West
Prosecutors say suspect in UCLA student Brianna Kupfer's murder recorded brutal stabbing
Brianna Kupfer’s alleged killer is on trial for her murder two years after the brutal stabbing of the 24-year-old UCLA student.
Kupfer, an architectural graduate student, was working alone at Croft House, a boutique furniture store in Los Angeles’ Hancock Park, Jan. 13, 2022, when Shawn Laval Smith allegedly entered the store and stabbed her dozens of times.
“The evidence will demonstrate that the defendant attacked Brianna with such force, such determination, with such frequent and numerous swings of this knife that he bent the steel blade,” Habib Balian, a deputy district attorney, said in the prosecution’s opening statement. “Brianna Kupfer was stabbed to death 26 times.”
Smith, who has a long criminal history, was arrested six days after Kupfer’s murder.
FORMER MAFIA HITMAN SENTENCED TO 25 YEARS FOR KILLING OF BOSTON CRIME BOSS JAMES ‘WHITEY’ BULGER
Shawn Laval Smith is on trial for allegedly stabbing Brianna Kupfer to death in 2022. (KTTV)
“This is a brutal murder,” Nathan Hochman, who is running against LA County District Attorney George Gascon, told Fox News Monday.
“Shawn Laval Smith, according to the prosecution’s opening statement, was a transient who had over a decade-long criminal history,” Hochman added. “Investigators found Smith’s knife with his DNA on it, there’s video of him at the store and he actually made an audio recording where you could hear on the audio tape that she is pleading with him, that she can actually help him.”
“With her last breathing words, she’s telling him: ‘I can help you, I can help you, I can help you.’ And he’s telling her, ‘It’s over, b—-, it’s over,’” Balian said in the courtroom.
He added “the defendant recorded himself talking about his most vile and disgusting and grotesque thoughts about women.”
WHO IS BRIANNA KUPFER, THE LOS ANGELES STABBING VICTIM?
Brianna Kupfer, 24, was stabbed to death in 2022. (Linkedin)
Hochman added that Smith “should have never have been on the streets that day. He had a rap sheet going back a decade, and if the prosecutors at the time had been doing their job, and he had been arrested on his outstanding warrants, he would not have been in the furniture store that day to kill Brianna Kupfer.”
Smith went to six other stores before finding Kupfer, trying to find a woman working alone, prosecutors said, according to FOX 11.
“He wanted to kill women,” Balian said in court.
Kupfer’s parents called her an “angel.” (Emma McIntyre/Getty Images)
If convicted, Smith could face life without the possibility of parole.
“It’s interesting because you sit here and you think, ‘What am I going to say about her?’ and you want to be authentic, and you want to be real. And all those things never sound real when you say that she was an angel and she was perfect, right?” Kupfer’s father, Todd Kupfer, told FOX 11 last week ahead of the trial.
“It sort of doesn’t sound true, but, in fact, it pretty much was.”
Read the full article from Here
Coffee, croissants and classical music brought office workers, residents and visitors together at One Sansome as the free monthly Baroque & Brew series transformed a weekday morning into a community gathering in downtown San Francisco.
The event, held inside the Conservatory at One Sansome, featured live performances by Philharmonia Baroque and invited attendees to enjoy music in the landmark building’s 8,100-square-foot atrium.
Guests were free to sit or stand while listening, with many nearby office workers stopping in during an early lunch break.
The monthly series is scheduled to return in August and September and aims to bring together downtown workers and neighbors through music and shared public space.
“It’s a beautiful opportunity to have coffee, to be in community, and do what our city is known for—the art, the culture—and to share it with each other,” attendee Roger Joyner said. “It’s a beautiful summertime moment.”
Joyner said events like Baroque & Brew reflect the character of the city.
“I think that’s what San Francisco is meant to be…a city that offers culture and the beauty of art to the world. And we that live here get to enjoy it,” he said.
Organizers said the performances are intended to make live classical music more accessible while contributing to ongoing efforts to revitalize downtown San Francisco.
“It’s just a really nice way for us to get the music out of the concert hall to the people downtown, trying to reactivate Downtown San Francisco and show what a welcoming place we can be as a city,” said Isaac Bunch, general manager of Philharmonia Baroque Orchestra and Chorale.
For Joyner, the event also offered a chance to pause amid the pace of daily life.
“We get to take a break. We are hustle and bustle, doing what we do to make the city work, and then we get refreshed by it,” he said. “I think it’s great — it brings it right into the middle of our hub.”
The gathering highlighted how music, conversation and public spaces can bring people together as downtown San Francisco continues its recovery.
Denver, CO
One tree at a time: Denver nonprofit works to close shade gap as heat dome threatens neighborhoods
DENVER — Some Denver neighborhoods are far more vulnerable to this weekend’s incoming heat dome than others — and the difference comes down to trees.
The Valverde neighborhood on the city’s west side has about 9% canopy cover, leaving residents with little shade as temperatures climb toward triple digits.
▶️ WATCH: Denver7’s Claire Lavezzorio learns more about The Park People and how it is helping neighborhoods in Denver.
One tree at a time: Denver nonprofit works to close shade gap as heat dome threatens neighborhoods
Kim Yuan-Farrell, executive director of The Park People, a nonprofit that plants trees in underserved neighborhoods, said the disparity across Denver is stark.
“We have some neighborhoods that have wonderful canopy cover, like 20 to 30% of those neighborhoods are forested. Then a number of our neighborhoods have really low canopy cover, between four or 8% where it’s just significantly less,” Yuan-Farrell said.
Denver7
The Park People identified 28 neighborhoods in need of more tree cover, including Westwood, Globeville and Northeast Park Hill.
Trees can cool an area by 15 to 20 degrees, making a significant difference.
The National Weather Service (NWS) warned the heat dome could last through next weekend.
“The exceptional thing about this is how long it will last,” said NWS meteorologist Russell Danielson. “If you do have trees to take shelter under, it does actually cool down the temperature a decent amount.”
Yuan-Farrell said trees are more than a comfort — they are a critical piece of urban infrastructure.
Denver7
“We really consider it a really essential element of green infrastructure, a real nature-based solution to a lot of these really serious local environmental problems,” Yuan-Farrell said.
In the map below, explore Denver’s libraries and rec centers that welcome the public in from the heat during business hours.
When asked whether Denver has a long road ahead, she did not hesitate.
“We have a lot of work ahead of us,” Yuan-Farrell said. “And we really need our whole community to get involved in that.”
The Park People plant anywhere from 1,200 to 2,000 trees a year. You can apply for one in your yard. Planting is set to begin in September.
Denver7 | Your Voice: Get in touch with Claire Lavezzorio
Denver7’s Claire Lavezzorio covers topics that have an impact across Colorado. If you’d like to get in touch with Claire, fill out the form below to send her an email.
(QUICK LINKS: Music lineups … vendor list … food and drink … Kids Zone info)
6:04 PM: At West Seattle Summer Fest, the crowd has grown steadily, especially now that the workday is over. Main-stage music continues – here’s the second band of the day, Chico Detour:
That’s their song “Crying at My Party.” As main-stage music continues, The Big Dark Corner is just getting going at California/Alaska by KeyBank, a new space this year – programmed by West Seattle’s The Big Dark Records. And you have a wide variety of choices for dinner and drinks – The Porch in the lot behind KeyBank, stands on that side of SW Alaska, some vendors on newly pedestrian-only SW Oregon, the beverage garden by the main stage ..
… and of course all the year-round local venues, many with outdoor cafés. Coordinators say it’s gone smoothly so far. Updates to come!
6:25 PM: That’s Leonard Jarvey and The Sock Monkeys, opening the night at The Big Dark Corner. Still to come there tonight – Sad Dad Autumn at 7, Across 35th at 7:30. Meantime, over in the Kids Zone, the foam party’s back this year:
7:39 PM: A bit of Zookraught and their dance-punk sound on the main stage:
And Across 35th has a throng at The Big Dark Corner – video:
8:20 PM: Vendors are wrapping up for the day, since the festival’s official end time – not counting music – was 8 pm. Here at the Info Booth, most everything’s rolled up too, except our table, and we’re packing up shortly (after one more band – added, here’s that video of Blackie:)
The night wraps up with Alien Crime Syndicate at 10 pm.
ADDED 11:45 PM: Thanks to WSB contributor Jason Grotelueschen for clips from the night’s last two main-stage bands – Caitlin & Brent with the Passenger String Quartet:
And Alien Crime Syndicate:
P.S. Thanks to the many kind people who stopped by our table to say hi – we’ll be back tomorrow, starting at 10 am.
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