What happened to Blaze Bernstein? Details explored ahead of 48 Hours on CBS

Blaze Bernstein was a 19-year-old University of Pennsylvania sophomore who came home to Orange County for winter break in January 2018. Around 11 pm on January 2, he left his parents' house to meet former high school classmate, Samuel Woodward, at Borrego Park.

Blaze never returned, and after an eight-day search, deputies discovered his body buried in a shallow grave. He had been stabbed 28 times. Detectives quickly zeroed in on Woodward when Blaze's Snapchat log revealed that the two of them had arranged their late-night meetup.

Woodward's car contained blood traces and a knife sheath bearing Blaze's DNA, prosecutors later said. In 2024, jurors found Woodward guilty of first-degree murder with a hate-crime enhancement, citing his ties to the neo-Nazi Atomwaffen Division.

At 10 pm ET tonight, CBS will air an encore of the 48 Hours episode The Life and Death of Blaze Bernstein, also streaming on Paramount+, to revisit the case.

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What transpired on January 2, 2018, and who exactly was Blaze Bernstein?

Blaze Bernstein, an openly gay, Jewish pre-med student, had returned to California eager to see friends. Text messages show he accepted Woodward's late-night invitation and shared his home address on Snapchat. Hours later, he vanished.

As per a CBS News report dated June 21, 2025, investigators recovered Blaze's body on January 9 and noted 28 stab wounds, confirming a brutal attack. Woodward told detectives he had dropped Blaze at the park and driven away, but cellphone pings and blood evidence in his vehicle undercut that story.

The Orange County district attorney later labeled the killing "a hate crime" tied to Woodward's extremist ideology.

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Building the hate-crime case against Samuel Woodward

Prosecutors argued Woodward planned the murder to impress Atomwaffen peers. They produced a digital "hate diary," photographs of Woodward performing Nazi salutes, and DNA linking him to the knife. As per a CBS News report dated June 21, 2025, Senior Deputy District Attorney Jennifer Walker told jurors:

“The killing happened in less than an hour...You'll see the cellphone evidence, the DNA evidence, the defendant's words, the defendant's hate.”

Woodward's defense conceded homicide but denied hate-crime intent, claiming an autistic meltdown after an unwanted advance. Jurors rejected that narrative after a three-month trial, finding premeditation and bias.

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Verdict, life sentence and the BlazeItForward legacy

On July 3, 2024, the jury delivered a guilty verdict. Judge Kimberly Menninger later imposed life without parole, stating there was "evidence the defendant planned the murder" and that bias motivated the crime. As per the ABC News report dated November 15, 2024, the judge added:

"Unfortunately for Mr. Woodward, the hate that fueled his thoughts was super disconcerting to this court and unfortunately reflects a larger societal ill that's currently raging throughout this country,"

Victim-impact testimony underscored the loss. As per ABC News, Blaze Bernstein's mother, Jeanne Pepper, said:

"I had to go to a cemetery with a broken heart and choose a grave for my 19-year-old son....I couldn't believe this was real.”

Outside the court, the Bernsteins launched the "BlazeItForward" campaign, encouraging acts of kindness worldwide. Jeanne Pepper hopes the movement turns grief into hope. As per the CBS News report dated June 21, 2025, Pepper told 48 Hours:

“Slow justice is no justice...It's not fair to victims, and it's not fair to the deceased.”

The 48 Hours encore tonight revisits every step, from the Snapchat trail to the landmark hate-crime verdict, ensuring Blaze Bernstein's story continues to inspire change.

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Stay tuned for more updates.

Edited by Maithreyi S