The Life and Death of Blaze Bernstein | Full Episode | Forensic Files

[Music] like many things in life the facts of this case are not simple they're not
black and white it's easy to forget how symbolic this trial was of a greater problem in the world you will hear
strong compelling evidence that explains the real reason for this very sad and tragic killing
it's been six years is it still hard to believe that blae is gone it took a while for it to set
in but I'm at peace with it maybe that's all that we were supposed to have happy
[Applause] [Music] birthday there were like 19 years with so many moments of Brilliance and
[Applause] Beauty Blaze was very creative definitely when we were little kids did you want cheese sure we were like
attached at the hip I think of him as somebody whose potential for life was completely
obliterated blae Bernstein was gay and his killer was a member of a Neo-Nazi group undercover officers made their
move on Sam Woodward what have you learned about neo-nazis they're everywhere they're all over the Internet they're
here in Orange County I believe that this was a hate crime the 26-year-old's appearance has changed dramatically from
the time of his arrest back in 2018 at the trial Sam looked like a spitting image of Charlie
Manson it was absolutely terrifying to look at the evidence will show you that the defendant killed Blaise Bernstein
because he was gay he was gay and Jewish hate crime or Crime of Passion the difference is the possibility of parole
blae Bernstein was found with 28 stab wounds the prosecution has a bit of a higher bar here because they also have
to show that Sam murdered blae because of his gay identity he had developed his longstanding beliefs against Jewish
people and gay people what happened that night was not a hate crime we knew that he was going
to present some story of what happened that night not the targeting of someone because of his sexual
orientation what kind of story could he come up with Sam Woodward never planned to kill blae
Bernstein homophobia sexual repression hookup culture it almost never ends the way that this story ends we don't have
any control over what the outcome is he could be innocent we'll let a jury decide
[Music] [Music] the why is the single most important issue you will need to decide not who is respons responsible
for the death of a young man but exactly why he was killed 6 years ago for Genie
pepper and her husband Gideon Bernstein those six years were painfully marked by
covid delays shifting lawyers and legal strategies slow Justice is no justice it's not fair to victims and
it's not fair to the deceased finally came April of 2024 Genie and Gideon were more than ready for their day in court
we're impatient we want to get on with our lives but not before telling the story of their firstborn child blae
Bernstein how he lived and why they believe he died murdered because of who he was targeted by hate it's not safe
for you to be a lot of different minorities now the victim in this case and nobody disputes that he was a victim
was stabbed to death Ken Morrison would defend Samuel Woodward charged with first-degree premeditated murder
Morrison squared off against prosecutor Jennifer Walker and where we start is with who was killed Blaise Bernstein and
he was 19 he was gay and Jewish the silent ghostly presence in the courtroom was
Blaze that slender curious playful young man with a big world images that refuse to
fade are there pictures or things that flash through your mind that you think of Blaze always every
day it was just weeks after Blaze's death that we first met Genie and Gideon wounds raw they shared Bittersweet
Memories of the sun they described as magical in the first time I saw him and I looked in his eyes there something
about this baby he's going to change the world someday boom boom boom hey that's be the intro what do you miss
most about plays yeah that's it his quirky personality Bo boom he was different he
liked to turn the ordinary into the extraordinary I call him the Unicorn he was magnificently
creative it was late summer 2016 and blae who'd already achieved so much was headed to an Ivy League school here in
Philadelphia the University of Pennsylvania there'd be new friends mentors and challenges and Blaze seemed
ready for it all please he really hit his stride a creative writer thinking about a career in
medicine he was Finding himself then came winter break sophomore year Blaze headed home he was really
looking forward to being with us too there were holiday celebrations and Hanukkah candles the budding Chef cooked
up a gourmet meal and then sometime on the night of January 2nd 2018 blae secretly left his parents house it would
be the last time that night when did you realize that he was missing we didn't I
didn't know that night we didn't even know we thought he slept in and the next day we were I I had my aha moment when I
was at the dental appointment the next day blae was due to meet his mother for that dentist
appointment but blae never showed up and wasn't answering his cell phone I called
Gideon he asked me if blae had ever come home the night before and I screamed out
I don't know rushed out of the office and came home we both did we flew home and checked Blaze's room his
wallet his retainers his keys those are all still at the house his glasses yeah all of that stuff was at
the house but your thought was well it was just so highly unusual he wanted to spend time with us I just kept texting
and calling him and leaving messages all day where had he been we didn't know they called police and tried to log on
to Blaze's social media accounts we just jumped on his computer this was a big challenge for us but with the help of
family and friends they logged on to Blaze's Snapchat that's where they discovered the night he disappeared blae
had sent his home address to someone Sam Woodward a seeming stranger we never heard the name never heard the name
before Gideon and jeie were panicked and baffled who was Sam so Gideon messaged Sam please pick up Sam got on the phone
the Bernstein recorded the phone conversation and would share it with police we just cracked in a snap account
and saw that you had been uh trying to find him so you're the first real clue to the to the puzzle here Sam pieces of
the puzzle began with him meeting Blaze near the Bernstein's home I picked him up at 11 and he said he drove him here
nearby bgo park with its thick brush and twisting paths and that once there they
parked okay and then did he get out of the car or what happened yeah he got out of the car and uh I got out of the car
too and Sam added Blaze claiming he was going to meet a friend walked down a path and vanished into the darkness I
shouted out Blaze Blaze but I didn't see anything I didn't hear anything Sam explained to The Bernstein how he knew
Blaze and why he says they were getting together it was more of a Spur the moment kind of thing yeah dude let's
hang out since you and I were friends when we were at oan OSHA the Orange County School of the Arts where rayar
rovski blazee and Sam were once classmates rea's High School memories of Sam were about to come flooding back
with a vengeance I got a call from my mom R did you hear and I said what and she said blaze is
missing and then my mom said rehea he was with this guy named San Woodward I scream in the phone he what and she was
like do you know this guy and I said yes I know this guy he's crazy how different were Sam and Blaze
oh they were so different probably about as different as you could be hauntingly
different says Blaze's oldest friend so when that word began to filter across Orange County that Blaze hadn't come
home and that Sam Woodward might be a person of interest it chilled rehea to the Bone her memories of Sam impossible
to shake well hello ladies he was drawing guns in his notebook in class did you say anything no but you thought
this is [Music] terrifying the spotlight was on Sam Woodward whom rehea remembered from high
school he was very quiet very withdrawn didn't really talk to people Sam Woodward odd man out says rehea you know
everybody has their click but I don't think he identified with any of them really and as far as
anyone knew the last person to see blae Bernstein alive the only reason I can think of Sam
meeting up with blae is because either number one he wanted to hook up with him or two because he was planning to murder
him and as for that story Sam told that on the spur of the moment he and blae had decided to hang out it didn't come
close to adding up for rehea he had a reputation of being what racist homophobic sexist it was rehea who was
there when Blaze's sexuality was still a secret until along a glistening California beach he bravely confided in
his oldest friend so you guys were kind of walking down the beach alone together
and he came out to you yeah rehea who would later also come out stepped up when it mattered most all I could do was
be a good friend and love him unconditionally did you get the sense that Blaise had told anyone else that I
think that he did he was kind of upset to say it something that clearly was a big secret for him and yeah you know
coming out to yourself is a really mature difficult thing to do and what did you tell him I told him
it's okay if you like boys that's totally fine love her you love well he hadn't yet told his parents
Gideon and jeie sensed blae might be gay we went up to him and said listen whatever your situation is we we embrace
it we love you we don't care but in those first days of 2018 it wasn't just love it was also an unimaginable fear
that cons doed Genie and Gideon as the search for Blaze began Orange County cops spoke with Sam
he repeated what he told the Bernstein on that phone call that he had picked blaze up driven to bgo park and that
then Blaze had vanished by January 5th the search had become massive we're out here conducting
a search for Blaze Burnstein we're here today to get your help to find our son please keep keep your eyes open for my
baby I want him home with me now search and rescue teams and helicopter search the Wilderness Area
and we printed up thousands and thousands of Flyers that people in the congregation put up everybody's
looking Shalom Rabbi Arnold rockless coordinated the search from University synagogue
where blae was an active member and a role model please join me in honoring blae Bernstein blae embraced his Jewish
Heritage and confronted its haters not only were 6 million Jewish people systematically murdered throughout
Europe in concentration camps at such a young age to see someone with so much talent is a beautiful thing a good heart
a good Soul that's what Blaze had everyone was somehow hoping for good news including seemed Sam
Woodward okay so is this the best number to reach you at uh yes sir it is last time on that
call that Gideon had recorded Sam sounded deeply concerned yeah I want to find blood as much as you
[Music] do but Blaze was nowhere to be found anxious hours stretched into sleepless
nights I really didn't know if we would ever find him as the days passed you know that it became more and more
difficult and I thought we're never going to know we're never going to know what happened exactly we're never going
to figure it out [Music] um yeah that's what I thought I immediately thought he's dead he's dead just from
hearing that he was with Sam it was day seven since blae last left home a family a community was
beyond frustrated Detectives had searched bgo park over and over but they decided to give it one more look in the
pouring rain a detective stood right over there and hidden under a large tree branch was a mound of dirt under the wet
caked Earth lay Blaze Burnstein if not the rain we would have never known what happened to him so the
rain uncovered his face Leia and Richard B Burstein are Blaze's grandparents we just loved him I wish I could write like
he wrote I wish I could cook like he cooked where's blae yeah he's in the front 48 Hours met them just a few
months after blae was murdered I think the world lost a a beautiful soul I always think of him before I go
to sleep their grandchild once brimming with life and possibility had been horrifically
slaughtered with a knife then the funeral happened and it was shattering the grief stretched across
Orange County we're hugging them right now we're all hugging them this is our big
giant hug to them just want to know why I don't I don't even want to know because I'm not going to like that
[Music] [Music] answer 3 days after blae Bernstein was found butchered and broken can you tell us
what happened to blaze no com investigators confronted his onetime classmate Sam Woodward were you there
when he disappeared at his parents' home no comment undercover officers made their
move on Sam Woodward this afternoon as he pulled out of his Newport Beach driveway and went down the road they
pulled that car over and arrested him Sam wward was charged with murder with the personal use of a knife then Orange
County DA Tony rakus how did Blaise Bernstein die he was stabbed multiple times in the neck what does that tell
you well it tells me that there was a lot of hate for Blaze's parents the details of his murder were
too much to even imagine I just try not to think about what that really meant I don't think that I that I physically
can deal with the trauma of what's happened as police gathered evidence the violence that happened in bgo park was
revealed with Blaze's body his battered phone inside Sam Woodward's car blood the blood on the headliner uh belonged
to both Sam Woodward and Blaise Bernstein Blaise Bernstein's blood was in Sam Woodward's car yes yes and then
they went on to search the house yes what kind of forensic evidence did they gather there was a
knife the knife had blood on it Blaze Bernstein's Blood on the knife at his arraignment Sam Woodward
would plead not guilty investigators would continue to search for what happened that night in
bgo park they would soon come to believe that Sam had a dark and frightening secret he was involved in this extreme
Neo-Nazi organization automen division which does expect its members to explicitly Target members of the Jewish
and lgbtq Community Sarah Moore monitors hate crime working for glad one of the most prominent gay rights organizations
in the country she's kept a close eye on the small but violent group Adam Wen these are their propaganda videos posted
between 2017 and 18 they want to kind of blow up the world as it is they want to
create something entirely new and the new thing is what in their mind it would be a white ethn
State and there's either no Jewish or no lgbtq or no people of color in that Society how does Adam rten recruit they
recruit primarily online just a click away and exactly where Sam whom rayar rovski
remembers had troubl making friends found some strangers who welcomed and encouraged him did you consider yourself
a Neo-Nazi I just considered myself a Nazi this man does not want his identity revealed but he says he was once a
member of Adam waen and that he came in contact with Sam the year before blae was
murdered it was like a camaraderie type common interest and those interests were
hating other groups hating Jews hating gays hating blacks yeah oh yeah how involved was Sam Woodward in
Adam Wen I know that he was involved involved enough say investigators to wear the Adam waffin
mask give the Nazi salute make a pilgrimage to Colorado to meet Neo-Nazi leader James Mason
and travel to Texas to attend Adam wen's version of a corporate retreat they call
it hate camp at hate camps members will get kind of a one-one training on how to
be a violent extremist and that bitter January 2018 when news broke that Blaze had been
stabbed to death allegedly by a member of Adam waen as Orange County mourned neo-nazis reportedly cheered everyone
celebrated him like he killed a g which in their mind is sort of a jackpot GH it's
disgusting there were people congratulating this accused killer for what he has done killing my son
congratulating him had you ever heard of Adam wafin no before this but we should
have because we're a perfect Target for that group because of Sam's involvement in Adam waen 7 months after Blaze's
murder prosecutors upped the anti adding a hate crime enhancement a murder motivated by
Prejudice as the story unfolded that the murder was related to homophobia and anti-Semitism well then the anger in the
community ratcheted up for some it brought back the darkest of times it must seem like all of this hate
was behind you that's something in the past you can't forget it you can't forget it
never it's a murderous Echo from her past all too real for Grandma Leia a holocaust
Survivor once a little girl forced by Hitler's Nazis to wear a yellow star yes we did wear this St it's a horrible
irony that what you escaped is is following me Sam Woodward was locked up in the
Orange County jail he would begin his yearslong journey through the justice system it included a revolving door of
defense lawyers who raised questions with the court about Sam's mental health and his ability to defend himself
in 2022 Sam Woodward was found competent to stand trial investigators say they also minded
Sam Woodward's phone and social media activity and along with the Nazi propaganda they found something
else Sam had visited gay dating and porn sites and he had exchanged flirtatious messages with
blaze so they match twice on Tinder leis Keane a reporter for the forward would cover the case and report on the
conversations between Sam and blae Blaise admits that he's gay blae says I think you're hot and Sam says back to
blae you're not too badl looking yourself Blaze so they kind of had this flirty interaction maybe Sam was like closeted
and wanted to hook up Raya rovski moved to New York York City where she lives as
an openly bisexual woman she still wonders about Sam's intention and blazes that tragic night in bgo park the
defense May argue that blae made a move on Sam and Sam freaked out okay and if you freak out does that excuse you
stabbing somebody April 2024 stuff is getting real the jury's being picked finally Sam Woodward headed
to trial over time the case had taken on even greater meaning there's a lot at stake here because it's not just about
getting Justice for blae but it's also about what precedent this is setting for other lgbtq plus people who have been or
might in the future be in similar situations Blaze's parents steadied themselves to relive the night that
shattered their lives I know that a lot of things will be said that are probably
untrue because that's what happens in a criminal trial I have an opportunity to defend
Blaze and that's what I will do see more evidence in the case at 48 [Music] hours.com please come to order Superior
Court is now in session the people call Genie pepper It's the final thing that I
have to do for my son is be there and make sure that there is some form of Justice good afternoon is it took more
than 6 years for Genie and Gideon to get this day in court I just want to thank you for being here and I'm I'm sorry
that the circumstances but it comes with terrible memories of the day they lost their son Blaze you remember where you
were when you got the phone call I do remember that yes and why does that stand out in your
mind because it was the beginning of how the couple have to come face to face with their son's killer but the killer
Sam Woodward doesn't seem to want to be seen can I ask you to move the hair out of your face a little
bit maybe pull the hair on the right side of your head away so we can see you please thank you even before he took the
stand Sam Woodward was already an eerie presence in the courtroom who got everyone's attention Sam looked like
Charles Manson so you couldn't really see his face no you couldn't really hear him all
the time reporter Lewis Keane if you're in the jury he looks extremely menacing do you want to look him in the
eye not really I don't care he's meaningless to me and can I nag you one more time to move your hair out of your
face a little bit for [Music] us BL we love you and we want you to come home back when they were
frantically searching for Blaze please keep your eyes open for my baby I want him home with me now Sam Woodward told
them he didn't know anything about what happened to their son I didn't see where
he went I searched all over for him I couldn't find him anywhere but his looks have changed
dramatically and so has his story do you remember what you're thinking when you were driving the knife down again and
again and again an anger like nothing I'd ever felt my whole life there's absolutely no question Sam
Woodward killed blae Bernstein the evidence will show that Samuel Woodward is guilty of homicide the
question for the jury is why this homicide was committed Sam's defense attorney said in opening arguments that
we were going to hear from Sam about something that happened that night that provoked Sam into killing Blaze the
challenge for defense attorney Ken Morrison is to prove voluntary manslaughter that Woodward acted
impulsively there was no cold calculated decision to kill and the knife according to the
defense it wasn't ever meant for murder from the time Sam was a Boy Scout Sam was never without one would you ever
carry a pocket knife with you in your pant's pocket yes I would almost all the time
did you have a knife in your pocket when you with blaze Bernstein yeah yes I did the killing happened in less than an
hour prosecutor Jennifer Walker argues this was premeditated murder and a hate crime you'll see the cell phone evidence
the DNA evidence the defendant's words the defendants hate in the nearly 3 months at trial Walker painstakingly put
on more than 20 Witnesses including the same former Adam wafin member who spoke with us now a witness for the
prosecution who still wanted his identity concealed do you recognize that yes what is it that's a picture of Sam
Woodward all to build the case for the added hate charge and a greater sentence the difference is the possibility of
parole if it's no hate crime then it's 25 years to life with the possibility of parole if it's a first degree
premeditated murder and a hate crime Sam faces life in prison without possibility
of parole the facts of this case are not simple the defense uses a time honored tactic suggesting the victim is not as
innocent as he appears you will learn that blae Bernstein was not killed because of who he
was but because of what he did tell us what happened in Sam Woodward's version Sam can you pick your head up move your
hair Blaze was toying with him and threatening to out him once they were in bgo park Sam says he smoked a joint I
started nodding off Sam says he thought Blaze took a compromising picture I saw my pants
unbuckled I could practically like feel something somewhat close to my leg and he had his phone in his
hand he tells us that he believes that Blaze is taking a photo of his privates I just came undone I went in a
state of just Terror and I asked what are you doing what are you doing and no photo was ever found so there's no
evidence that Blaze actually took one what were you afraid of I grew up in a home with my mother
and my father and I love them more than I can imagine my father though he there's no way not a chance people
like him just even thinking about the look on his face if he saw something like that if he'd heard about something
like that that got out somehow I couldn't fathom that Sam grew up in an ultra conservative Catholic household he had
parents who believed homosexuality was a sin but Sam also seemed to have really conflicted feelings about his own
sexuality What You Come Away with is just immense sadness of all these external forces coming to bear on his
life he did what he did and what he did can't be undone any idea how long it took to stop
stabbing Blaze no idea no it was one of the most awful things I've ever heard and you know that
Blaze's parents are sitting there for months of this trial they've been hearing their son is accused of sexual
assault you can't really imagine what that's like Genie pepper walked out of the room
for the prosecution the only predator in this story is Sam Woodward he has a 6in
knife out and blazes the Predator Blaze is the problem here that's what's being sold to you by the defendant he was
interested and fixated on hate Adam Waf and division had that outlet for him only two people know what really
happened that night Sam Woodward has had his say blae Bernstein isn't alive to tell us
you should find him guilty of the first degree murder with the hate crime it's the only reasonable
conclusion do you have any hesitation do you have any doubt now it's up to the [Music]
jury the passage of time has been doubly hard for Blaze's grandparents Richard and Leia still waiting for justice for
the grandson they loved and lost I miss him all everything about him he was loving
and caring he was handsome too Blaze and his exceptional appetite for life I tried to treat him as just a
normal kid you know and he He Turned about uh sorry he turned out well on July 3rd
2024 the jurors began their deliberations I don't want him to die I want him to suffer every day of his
life is there a part of you that wants to look that young man in the eye no why not because he's a footnote in
history whether footnote or headline grandparents parents Rabbi oldest friend it felt like forever I was nervous and I
felt anxiety because I was not sure what the verdict was going to be 2,364 days after his rest Sam Woodward's
fate is on the line living and dying in prison or someday possibly walking free it's my understanding that you do have a
verdict is that accurate we have it took the jury 8 hours the verdict being read
there's no way to describe what it's like sort of the emotional intensity of the
moment we the jury find the defendant Samuel Woodward guilty of the crime of first
murdered but as soon as the jury says guilty I heard Genie say oh thank God God guilty of murder but was it hate did
Sam Target Blaze because he was gay the jury spoke again with the jury find it to be true that defendant Samuel
Woodward committed hate crime first-degree murder [Music] outside the Orange County courtroom all
that pain and uncertainty overflow good afternoon my name is Todd Spitzer I'm the district attorney of Orange County
the current da offered thoughts on love and law we don't care who you love or who you want to be with you deserve to
be a free person with Free Will and love who you love and that needs to be protected
we are thrilled with the verdict which holds Samuel Woodward accountable for the
brutal violent painful murder of our son brother grandson cousin blae Bernstein on
January 3rd 2018 his parents will never get to speak to him again and that loss is
incalculable the Woodwards also lost their son he's going to prison when the verdict was that the
murder was a hate crime that essentially meant that there is the proof that blae
was murdered because he was gay and Jewish simple as that fora who blae first came out to on
that California beach in my head I was telling blae we finally got him like you know case
closed and says the prosecutor Sam Woodward should pay the maximum price he faces life without possibility of parole
and that's what we'll be asking for thank you experts who monitor Adam wafin say
it has largely dissolved but that the threat of hate groups remains today you said love who you
love it sounds so simple but it's not mhm just because you're accepting of yourself that doesn't mean that
everybody's going to see the same way as you do you [Music] know can you picture blae if he was
alive today no I don't think I can can you still hear his voice no that's kind of
sad yeah for jeie and Gideon Every Day brings reminders of what might have been I think about blae all the time because
when I see things I think to myself what would blae be doing now they founded what they call a kindness movement
promoting positivity and random acts of kindness in Blaze's name blaz of Ford was a response to Blaze's death and in
bgo park where Blaze took his last breath there is this hundreds of hand painted Stones
most left by total strangers in the memory of Blaze Bernstein this pile of stones has grown
and grown and grown yes it's great to see the messaging it's always positive and they're getting sent to us
from all over the world still still the silent Stones speak of Tolerance and Blaze Bernstein's
transformation into a kind of martyr his murder a marker of rabid hate his Spirit an inspiration to lgbtq
plus people wherever they live and with whomever they love Blaze's life mattered and he has
Legacy to create good news to inspire people to be better to be kinder and to work on repairing the world because it's
not too late and we can make it [Music] better new CBS next a young girl's mysterious disappearance she just
vanished and cat and mouse game with a convicted killer we don't have s's body do you think he will give that up I
don't know if he does it won't be out of the goodness of his heart new 48 Hours 2
episodes season premiere next on CBS and streaming on Paramount Plus [Music]

A brilliant college student is killed by a former classmate. Inside the trial of the secret neo-Nazi prosecutors say murdered Blaze because he was gay and Jewish. "48 Hours" correspondent Tracy Smith reports. Watch more full episodes of "48 Hours" on Pluto TV. (Aired Sept. 21, 2024)

True crime. Real justice. "48 Hours" investigates the most intriguing crime and justice cases that touch on all areas of the human experience including greed and passion. "48 Hours," which premiered in 1988, has developed a rich history of original reporting and impact journalism that has helped exonerate wrongly convicted people, caused cold cases to be reopened and solved, and along the way changed lives.

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Brief Summary

The episode details Blaise Bernstein's murder and the trial of Sam Woodward, highlighting themes of hate crimes and LGBTQ+ rights.

Key points

The Tragic Killing of Blae Bernstein. Blae Bernstein, a 19-year-old gay and Jewish man, was brutally murdered, raising questions of hate crime.
The Search for Blae. As the search for Blae intensifies, his family faces unimaginable fear and uncertainty.
Sam Woodward's Arrest. Sam Woodward, a classmate of Blae, is arrested in connection with his murder, raising suspicions.
The Hate Crime Enhancement. Prosecutors add a hate crime enhancement to the charges against Sam Woodward, intensifying community outrage.
Justice for Blaze Bernstein. Genie Pepper fights for justice in the courtroom, reflecting on the loss of her son.
The Verdict. After 2,364 days, the jury finds Sam Woodward guilty of first-degree murder and a hate crime.

Episode highlights

Episode quotes

It's not safe for you to be a lot of different minorities now.

4:55WatchSep 27, 2024

Tension

75/ 100High tension

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