Bernstein was Jewish, gay, quick-witted and smart, and with a large circle of friends. The sentencing hearing was held without Woodward appearing in court.

Samuel Lincoln Woodward faces life in prison without the possibility of parole for fatally stabbing 19-year-old Blaze Bernstein six years ago.

This was a hate crime," Blaze Bernstein’s mother, Jeanne Pepper, told the court. “Samuel Woodward ended my son’s life because my son was Jewish and gay.”

A 27-year-old man faces life in prison without the possibility of parole on Friday for the hate-crime killing of a gay former classmate in Foothill Ranch six years ago.

Samuel Lincoln Woodward was found guilty in July for the death of 19-year-old Blaze Bernstein, whose body was found days after he went missing, stabbed over 28 times and buried in a shallow grave at a Lake Forest Park.

A 27-year-old man was sentenced to life without possibility of parole Friday in an Orange County court for the 2018 hate-crime killing of his gay former classmate. Samuel Lincoln Woodward was found guilty in July for the death of 19-year-old Blaze Bernstein,

A California man convicted of stabbing to death a gay University of Pennsylvania student in an act of hate is expected to be sentenced to life in prison

Samuel Woodward, then 21, was driven by 'pure hate and rage' over his victim's sexual orientation and religious beliefs, the judge says.