A suspected hate crime trial is currently underway for the murder of a college student who was stabbed 28 times in 2018

SANTA ANA, Calif. (AP) – The killing of a gay University of Pennsylvania student in Southern California more than six years ago was a hate crime, a prosecutor said Tuesday in opening statements in a murder trial.

The defendant, 26-year-old Samuel Woodward of Newport Beach, is accused of stabbing Blaze Bernstein, a 19-year-old gay Jewish sophomore who was visiting his family at home over winter break. The two had previously attended the same high school in Orange County.

Prosecutor Jennifer Walker said Woodward joined a violent, anti-gay and anti-Semitic group called Atom Waffen Division and repeatedly targeted gay men online, contacting them and then dumping them, while also sending a hateful, profanity-filled message kept a diary of his deeds.

Weeks before the murder, Woodward expressed interest in moving from words to violent actions, she said, and then contacted Bernstein online.

“The defendant is guilty of killing Blaze Bernstein because he was gay,” she told jurors, adding that the victim was stabbed 28 times. “You will see that Blaze fought for his life as best he could.”

Woodward has pleaded not guilty to murder, with an additional sentence for a hate crime.

Defense attorney Ken Morrison didn't dispute that his client committed the fatal attack, but said Woodward didn't intend to kill anyone and he doesn't hate Bernstein, especially because he's gay.

Morrison said his client had faced challenges in personal relationships due to a long-undiagnosed autism spectrum disorder and was confused about his own sexuality.

“We agree that the evidence will show that Samuel Woodward is guilty of murder,” Morrison told jurors, later adding: “What happened that night was simply not a hate crime.”

Woodward sat in the courtroom wearing a suit jacket and his shoulder-length hair covering most of his face.

The process is expected to take months.

Bernstein disappeared in January 2018 after going with Woodward to a park in Lake Forest, about 45 miles southeast of Los Angeles. Bernstein's parents found his glasses, wallet and credit cards in his bedroom the next day when he missed a dentist appointment and did not respond to text messages or calls, prosecutors wrote in a court hearing.

Days later, his body was found buried in a shallow grave in the park.

Woodward picked up Bernstein at his parents' house after connecting with him on Snapchat and stabbed him in the face and neck, authorities said.

DNA evidence linked Woodward to the murder, and his cellphone contained anti-gay, anti-Semitic and hate group materials, authorities said.

According to authorities, a folding knife with a bloody blade was found in Woodward's room at his parents' house. Woodward was arrested two days later.

The case took years to reach trial after questions arose about Woodward's mental state and defense attorneys changed several times. Woodward was found competent to stand trial in late 2022.

One of his former lawyers said he has Asperger's syndrome, a developmental disorder that generally causes difficulty in social interactions, and that he struggles with his own sexuality.

Morrison has urged people to avoid jumping to conclusions.

“For six years, the public has read and heard a criminal and ridiculous portrayal of this case that is simply fundamentally false,” Morrison said by email. “I urge everyone to respect our judicial process and wait until a jury has seen, heard and evaluated all of the evidence.”

The Orange County District Attorney's Office declined to comment on the case before trial.