Man who fatally stabbed UCLA grad student Brianna Kupfer found guilty of murder

Jurors took little more than an hour on Tuesday to convict a man of murder in the stabbing death of UCLA graduate student Brianna Kupfer as she worked in a Hancock Park boutique furniture store.

Shawn Laval Smith, a 34-year-old transient with a lengthy criminal record, was found guilty of murder with the special circumstances of lying in wait, as well as committing the crime with a deadly weapon, a knife.

On Jan. 13, 2022, Smith stabbed Kupfer 46 times as she worked alone in the upscale Croft House.

Prosecutors and LAPD detectives say the Pacific Palisades resident had texted a friend about 1:36 p.m. to say she felt uncomfortable about a person who was in the store. The friend did not immediately respond, according to investigators. About 20 minutes later, a customer found Kupfer on the floor covered in blood.

The sanity phase of the trial is set to begin Oct. 2. Smith could receive a sentence of life without the possibility of parole if the judge determines he was sane at the time of the crime. Smith, who pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity, has waived a jury trial for this phase.

Shawn Laval Smith was found guilty of murder with the special circumstances of lying in wait, as well as committing the crime with a deadly weapon, a knife.

(Los Angeles Police Dept. )

Key to the conviction was an audio recording on a device that prosecutors said belonged to Smith and provided horrific evidence of the attack. A man can be heard telling a woman he’s “not gonna hurt her” and ordering her to “just get down on the floor.” The woman screams, and the man says: “It’s over, it’s over, it’s over, it’s over, b—.”

Following the stabbing, Smith fled out the back door of the furniture business, leaving his victim to bleed to death, according to prosecutor Habib Balian. Smith, however, left behind the knife, a knife sheath and the audio recorder covered in DNA that would implicate him in the murder.

Jurors agreed with Balian’s argument that there was “overwhelming evidence” that the murder was premeditated and convicted Smith on the most serious charge of first-degree murder and the special-circumstance allegation, as well as the knife allegation.

Smith was arrested six days after Kupfer’s death. A massive manhunt ended when police received a tip that Smith had been spotted sitting on a bus bench in downtown Pasadena. The tip came after Los Angeles police circulated his photo and a $250,000 reward was offered for information leading to his arrest and conviction.

“Brianna Kupfer was a promising young woman whose life was tragically taken far too soon,” L.A. County Dist. Atty. George Gascón said in a statement Tuesday after the verdict. “I thank the jury for their thoughtful deliberation and dedication in finding the defendant guilty.

“A bright and talented 24-year-old UCLA student, Brianna was dedicated to her studies in architectural design, with her whole future ahead of her,” he added. “Our hearts are with Brianna’s family, who have shown incredible strength and resilience throughout this harrowing ordeal.”

At the time of the Kupfer attack, Smith was out on bond pending a trial in South Carolina in a 2019 case. He was accused of firing a flare gun into a moving vehicle with a child inside.

Smith pleaded guilty in 2018 to charges that, two years before, he resisted or assaulted a police officer in South Carolina’s Charleston County. He was sentenced to time served, according to court records.

In January 2021, Smith allegedly vandalized a car in Daly City, Calif., and when officers arrested him, he resisted and bit one of them, according to court records. He was charged in San Mateo County with assault on a police officer and resisting arrest.

He subsequently pleaded no contest to one felony charge of resisting arrest. In addition to an eight-month jail sentence, Smith was ordered to serve two years of probation.

He served 133 days in jail and was released but failed twice to report to his probation officer, and his probation was revoked. A bench warrant was issued for Smith’s arrest, but he vanished.

City News Service contributed to this story.