The man accused of brutally murdering UCLA student Brianna Kupfer in a shocking attack in 2022 appeared in court Wednesday to learn his fate.
Brianna Kupfer, 24, was murdered in January 2022 at the upmarket Los Angeles furniture store where she worked by Shawn Laval Smith, now 34.
Smith was seen sitting in Los Angeles Superior Court as prosecutors played the chilling audio recording of the murder, which captured Kupfer’s desperate pleas for her life as she was stabbed to death.
The murder trial, presided over by Judge Mildred Escobedo, saw dramatic scenes as the Los Angeles deputy district attorney held up the alleged murder weapon, a knife, and its holster for the jury to examine.
Photos obtained by Dailymail.com show the accused murderer wearing a striped button-down shirt and a cloth face mask.
Brianna Kupfer was stabbed 26 times in the January 2022 attack
The man accused of brutally murdering UCLA student Brianna Kupfer in a shocking attack in 2022 appeared in court Wednesday to learn his fate.
The murder trial, presided over by Judge Mildred Escobedo, featured dramatic scenes when the Los Angeles deputy district attorney held up the alleged murder weapon, a knife, and its holster for the jury to examine.
Smith, who was sitting next to his defense attorney, listened to witness testimony as prosecutors laid out their case against the accused murderer.
In an opening statement, prosecutors argued that Smith was “looking to kill a vulnerable woman who was alone and isolated.”
The suspect reportedly had a recording in which he expressed his desire to “kill women.”
“Just 18 days before he found and murdered Brianna, the defendant recorded himself speaking the most vile, disgusting and grotesque thoughts about women,” Los Angeles County District Attorney Habib Balian said in court.
“The defendant, posing as a customer, tricked her into feeling safe and vulnerable, even going outside pretending to call his girlfriend,” the prosecutor said. “The proof we will show her is that they were not looking for a sofa. It was all a lie.”
Smith was seen sitting in Los Angeles Superior Court as prosecutors played the chilling audio recording of the murder, which captured Kupfer’s desperate pleas for her life as she was stabbed to death.
If convicted, the defendant could face life in prison without the possibility of parole (pictured: defense attorney and Shawn Laval Smith)
In an opening statement, the prosecution argued that Smith was “on a hunt to kill a vulnerable woman who was alone and isolated.” (Pictured: Los Angeles Deputy District Attorney holds a knife sheath as Shawn Laval Smith listens to testimony in Los Angeles Superior Court)
Brianna Kupfer, 24, was murdered in January 2022 at the upmarket Los Angeles furniture store where she worked by Shawn Laval Smith, now 34.
‘Brianna Kupfer, lying on the floor of Croft House, covered in her own blood, with blood stains around her.’
“In her last words, she was simply telling him, ‘I can help you, I can help you,’ and he was telling her, ‘It’s over (redacted).'”
Kupfer, a 24-year-old UCLA graduate student, was working alone at a furniture store in Hancock Park when she was stabbed to death in what police described as a random attack.
She was stabbed to death while working alone at the Croft House store in La Brea, just minutes after texting a friend that a man in the store was “giving her a bad vibe.”
Smith, 31 at the time of the murder, was located in Pasadena a day after the Los Angeles Police Department named him as the prime suspect in the unprovoked killing.
Smith, who reportedly has a criminal record spanning both coasts, was out on bail when he allegedly stabbed Kupfer to death.
Photos obtained by dailymail.com show the accused murderer wearing a striped button-down shirt and a cloth face mask.
Smith, who was sitting next to his defense attorney, listened to witness testimony as prosecutors laid out their case against the accused murderer.
He was handcuffed without incident at a bus stop near Fair Oaks and Colorado Boulevard around 11:50 a.m. It’s unclear if he was armed.
Smith was arrested about 15 miles from the high-end furniture store where Kupfer was killed.
A passerby alerted police after seeing the wanted man sitting on a park bench.
The suspected killer, who police believe was a homeless drifter, initially gave officials a false name, a source told the outlet. However, the Los Angeles Police Department’s fugitive unit was able to confirm his identity with a fingerprint reader.
Smith was previously arrested and charged with violent crimes in at least three states.
At the time of Kupfer’s murder, he was free on $50,000 bail after allegedly firing a gun into an occupied vehicle in Charleston, South Carolina, in November 2019.
Smith, who is awaiting arraignment, is a career criminal with a lengthy criminal record spanning both coasts, and is currently free on $1,000 bail for a misdemeanor arrest in Los Angeles County in October 2020, sheriff’s records show.
The Pacific Palisades architectural design student was alone at the Croft House store on La Brea Avenue in the upmarket Fairfax neighborhood of Los Angeles when a man walked in around 1:50 p.m. and stabbed her. She was found 20 minutes later by a customer.
An indictment in that case was handed down on March 16, 2020, just before COVID-19 shut down the courts, and the docket shows no further action in the case.
Smith, who is awaiting arraignment, is a career criminal with a lengthy criminal history spanning both coasts, and is currently free on $1,000 bail for a misdemeanor arrest in Los Angeles County in October 2020, sheriff’s records show.
Smith was arrested in Covina, California, on Oct. 27, 2020, and charged with allegedly stealing items from a local Home Depot. He was cited and released, police said.
In 2017, San Diego prosecutors convicted him of carrying a concealed knife and brandishing a deadly weapon in a fight. He was sentenced to three years probation and ordered to pay a $400 fine, according to court records.
If convicted, the defendant could face life in prison without the possibility of parole.
