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Blaze Bernstein memorial will honor killed college student
Community members in Orange County will gather Sunday afternoon to pay tribute to 19-year-old Blaze Bernstein, a college student who was found stabbed to death last month.
Bernstein was a sophomore at the University of Pennsylvania. He went missing in January while he was home in Lake Forest for winter break. A week later, Bernstein's remains were found at a nearby park.
Today's tribute will be held at the Segerstrom Center for the Arts in Costa Mesa. It will feature music from students at Orange County School of the Arts, where Bernstein attended school. His family will also thank the Orange County Sheriff's Department and volunteers who helped search for Bernstein.
The tribute will be live-streamed at 4:30 p.m.
20-year-old Samuel Woodward was arrested for and has pleaded not guilty to Bernstein's murder. The two men knew each other from high school.
Bernstein was gay. Prosecutors have been searching for evidence that his alleged murder was a hate crime, due to his sexual orientation. So far, no such charges have been filed.