A California homeless man found guilty of brutally stabbing to death a UCLA graduate student inside a boutique furniture shop was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole on Wednesday.
Shawn Laval Smith, 34, was convicted in September for the gruesome murder of Brianna Kupfer, a 24-year-old architectural graduate student, on Jan. 13, 2022.
The sentence was handed down after Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Mildred Escobedo reviewed reports from doctors and determined Smith was sane at the time of the murder, FOX11 Los Angeles reported.
Kupfer was working alone at Croft House in Los Angeles’ Hancock Park neighborhood when Smith, a homeless man with a long criminal history, entered the store and stabbed her 26 times during an unprovoked attack.
WHO IS BRIANNA KUPFER, THE LOS ANGELES STABBING VICTIM?
Shawn Laval Smith, 34, was convicted for the 2022 killing of Brianna Kupfer, 24, who was stabbed multiple times while working alone in a Los Angeles furniture shop. (KTTV/Linkedin)
Kupfer suffered 11 stab wounds to the chest, two in the abdomen, one to the pelvis, two on her right arm, five on her left arm, two on her right leg and three on her left leg. Security cameras showed Smith at the store and his DNA was found on the knife, prosecutors said.
Smith was arrested six days after Kupfer’s murder.
Brianna Kupfer worked at Croft House, a luxury furniture store in Los Angeles, when she was stabbed to death. (Todd Kupfer)
During the trial, prosecutors argued that Smith went “hunting for a woman alone” on the day of the murder, having approached six other stores before finding Kupfer working alone.
Moments before her death, Kupfer had sent a text to a friend that said she was getting a “bad vibe” from someone inside the store, authorities have said.
The 24-year-old was studying design as a grad student at UCLA. (Todd Kupfer)
BRIANNA KUPFER SENT PAL OMINOUS TEXT BEFORE SHE WAS STABBED TO DEATH
The friend said they saw the message about 15 minutes later, although police said Kupfer was killed within 10 minutes of sending it. A customer found Kupfer dead inside the store.
Kupfer’s family remembered the 24-year-old as someone who always worked to better herself and her community.
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“In many ways, [Brianna] embodied everything that is great about Los Angeles, and the entire city should grieve over this senseless act,” the family said in an earlier statement. “Brianna was a smart, funny, driven and a kind soul who only wanted to better herself and her community on a daily basis.”
Fox News’ Louis Casiano, Brie Stimson and Lawrence Richard contributed to this report.
