Brianna Kupfer
Before the Brianna Kupfer murder trial testimony started today, Judge Mildred Escobedo, warned those in the courtroom that “there will be graphic material presented that may cause reactions. Make an effort to not make gasps or sounds to whatever maybe shown in court.”
District Attorney Habib Balian told jurors “You’re going to meet Brianna Kupfer. You’re going to hear about Brianna in life; that she was kind, smart, reliable and creative. She was 24 years old and a graduate student at UCLA in architectural design.
“She supported herself and had a job at the Croft House, to pay for her school and for rent,” Balian said.
“She had her whole life ahead of her,” he said and described Briana’s job at the Croft House, which included not only helping customers, but arranging furniture vignettes of different rooms.
On the morning of January 13, 2021, she opened the store at 10 a.m. She was supposed to be working with another person, but she ended up covering that person’s shift, too.
“She had no way of knowing the danger she’d face that day,” Balian said in his opening statement.
The defendant, Shawn Laval Smith, had made a recording 18 days prior to the stabbing, talking “about his most vile and disturbing thoughts about women,” Balian said.
Smith had recorded, “I do not like the bitches.”
How did the police get the recording? Smith left it on the counter of the Croft House. He had left his tape recorder running during his interaction with Kupfer and it was on during the murder.
Smith had started his search for a victim earlier at an art house on Wilshire and 20th. He went into the store and asked about a piece of art. Once he sees that there are two employees, he leaves. (Police have video surveillance and a timeline from the stores Smith goes into.)
He goes to another art store on Beverly Boulevard, and when he sees a second worker he leaves. Next, he walks down La Brea Avenue and enters the Friedman Law Center, going to the second floor and sees a receptionist, but when he hears a man’s voice in the background, he leaves.
Smith next tries Landon Cole Furniture store, but when he enters, the owner, a male is there with two dogs, one growls at him, and he leaves.
The next stop is at the Chiropractic Center of L.A. He is buzzed in by the receptionist. “He asked if we did orthopedics,” the receptionist said in testimony today. She described Smith as tall, black, dressed in a black sweatshirt, with a black backpack.
She was shown surveillance footage from other the stores and said that the man in the video appeared to be the same man that had come into her store and then left when he heard other voices in the background. Smith is 6’2”, 190-pound male.
Smith’s next stop was the Croft House. He goes to Briana who is behind the desk and tells her he’s looking for a sofa for him and his girlfriend.
The Croft House
Smith’s audio captures what happened in the last seven minutes of Kupfer’s life. Beyond pleasant, she is helpful and tells him “Walk around and look,” she said.
At the same time, she was talking to him, she texted the store manager Kari Steib at 1:37 and wrote, “Can you call me? There’s someone here and I’m getting a weird vibe.”
Steib doesn’t get the message until 1:44 and immediately starts calling Briana and the store. By that time Brianna had been murdered.
Steib at the trial described Brianna as “She was very smart. She was easy to talk to and easy to interact with. She was good at getting tasks done, she did not require a lot of oversight.”
Then Steib started crying on the stand. “Customers trusted her, she was informative and friendly. She was very sweet.”
The 911 call made by Kelly Jeng was played.
Jeng and her boyfriend were looking for a sofa. They walked into the Croft House. “I saw a woman lying on the floor. It was terrible and gruesome,” Jeng said, in testimony and started crying. “I’ve never seen anything like that before.”
“She was on her back, there was a phone on the ground by the body,” Jeng said. They immediately left the store and called 911.
The operator asked if the woman was still alive and asked Jeng to go back inside to determine that, but Jeng said, “I’m sorry. I’m scared I don’t want to go in there.”
Brianna’s body was to the left of the store entrance in front of a couch, it appeared as if she was trying to escape. There was a footprint on the white sofa, as if someone had leaped on it to cut her off from getting out the front door.
The tape of the last minutes of Brianna’s life was played in court. The family left the courtroom, so they didn’t have to hear it.
Smith: “Can I get your Facebook information?”
Kupfer: “No.”
Smith “You paying attention to Biden?”
Kupfer: No.
Smith: “I think I’ll stop by a little later.”
Kupfer: “Cool.”
Smith: “I was told I was supposed to get information.”
Kupfer: “You can have one of the cards.” (There were employee business cards on the counter of the Croft House.)
Smith: “I think this government is crazy.” He notices that Kupfer has a phone. “Put down the phone.”
Kupfer: “I already called the cops.”
Then there’s a scramble and you can hear Kupfer say “Get off me.”
Smith: “it’s over. It’s over, it’s over. Bitch it’s over. It’s over bitch, it’s over.”
He walks out the back door, leaving the knife, the knife sheath and the recorder behind.
Kupfer suffered 46-sharp force wounds. There were 26 stab wounds and 11 of the wounds were to the chest, which punctured both lungs. According to the autopsy, she died from exsanguination – the loss of blood.
The knife that was found near her body, had a bent blade.
At the trial, the DA is painstakingly establishing the police’s knowledge and expertise and showing the chain of command.
Defense Attorney Robert Haberer reserved his opening statement until the beginning of the defense’s portion of the case. He has had limited questions for those testifying.
Detective Tyler Adams, who has been with LAPD for 19 years and worked on homicide for more than 8 years, detailed his expertise and the method in collecting DNA.
He explained how he swabbed the recorder and specifically the microphone screen because it was more likely to contain DNA. He also swabbed the ridge of the phone. The defense attorney faulted him for not getting DNA from the back of the device.
Adams said, “I know from experience that some areas will be better for DNA.”
It is hoped that Smith will testify, so that his prior crimes can be put on record.
The trial will continue at 9 a.m. downtown in Department 126 on the 15th floor of the Clara Shortridge Foltz Criminal Justice Center, 210 West Temple Street, L.A. Ca. 90012.
Shawn Laval Smith at the downtown courtroom for his trial of the murder of Brianna Kupfer. His defense attorney is Robert Haberer.
SMITH’S RAP SHEET
Smith’s lengthy rap sheet, with 15 arrests, shows he’s familiar with the court system. He has at least 11 arrests in Charleston, S.C., dating back to 2010, when he would have been in high school.
There is still a pending November 2019 South Carolina case against Smith for allegedly discharging a firearm into a stranger’s vehicle while a toddler was in the back seat. Records show he was released 10 days later after posting $50,000 bond. He was told not to leave the state.
He had been arrested three times in California, the first appears to be 2017 in San Diego, when he was arrested for carrying a concealed dagger and using a knife in a threatening manner.
Los Angeles
Jan. 18, 2022 – LAPD identify Smith in connection to the Jan. 13 murder of Briana Kupfer inside a furniture store on North La Brea Avenue.
San Mateo
In January 2021, Smith 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 with assault on a police officer and resisting arrest.
Dist. Atty. Steve Wagstaffe said that Smith’s defense attorney claimed he was mentally incompetent to stand trial. But the suspect was examined by two doctors and, based on their findings last May, a judge determined he was competent to be tried. He served 133 days of an eight-month sentence and was released, but failed to report to his probation officer and his probation was revoked in November.
A bench warrant was issued for Smith’s arrest, but he vanished from the scene, Wagstaffe said. South Carolina authorities never contacted his office, he said, despite Smith being held in San Mateo County jail for eight months.
Covina, Calif.
Oct. 27, 2020 – Smith was arrested in Covina, Calif. in 2020 for misdemeanor possession of stolen property after allegedly shoplifting at a Home Depot but L.A. County prosecutors didn’t press charges, the Covina Police Department said. He was released on $1,000 bail.
Charleston, S.C.
Nov. 13, 2019 – Smith is arrested and charged with discharge of a firearm into a vehicle while occupied. He posts $50,000 bond and is released on Nov. 23, 2019. He is told not to leave the state.
June 8, 2019 – Smith is arrested on a bench warrant and charged with entering premises, after receiving a warning. No bond is set, and he is released the following day.
March 13, 2019 – Smith is arrested and charged with entering premises after a warning. He is released the same day after posting $470 bond.
Nov. 5, 2018 – Smith is arrested on a bench warrant and charged with general sessions and probate contempt of court. He is held until his release on Dec. 14, 2018.
San Diego, Ca.
2017, Smith was charged with two counts of carrying a concealed dagger and using a knife in a threatening manner. He pleaded guilty and received six months in jail and three years of probation and was ordered to pay a $400 fine.
Charlotte, N.C.
June 27, 2016 – Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department announce that Smith has 14 active warrants for his arrest in connection to a rash of bicycle thefts in the Charlotte area. The outcome of this case was not immediately clear.
Charleston, S.C.
March 5, 2016 – Smith is arrested on charges of trespassing after a notice and resisting arrest. His bond is set at $10,470 bond. He posts bond and is released on April 7, 2016. The outcome of this case was not immediately clear.
March 1, 2016 – Smith is arrested on a charge of trespassing after notice. He posts $470 bond and is released the same day.
July 11, 2015 – Smith is arrested on a bench warrant on charges of careless driving, no driver’s license, and expired registration. He is released on Aug. 15, 2015.
Sept. 11, 2013 – Smith is arrested on charges of disorderly conduct and trespassing. He is released on Sept. 13, 2013, after posting $732 bond.
July 22, 2013 – Smith is arrested on a bench warrant and charged with littering on highways. He is released on Aug. 7, 2013.
June 12, 2013 – Smith is arrested and charged with simple possession of marijuana. He is released on June 28, 2013.
April 16, 2010 – Smith is arrested and charged with breach of trust. He is released on May 6, 2010.
No when should have to experience this.
What is wrong with the Los Angeles voters?
This is morally not acceptable
Why is this case even going to trial? What possible defense is being offered?