{"id":35433,"date":"2025-06-29T06:39:32","date_gmt":"2025-06-29T06:39:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/site.itshrt.com\/worldnews\/after-the-murder-of-their-son-by-a-neo-nazi-a-california-familys-extraordinary-journey-turning-grief-into-hope\/"},"modified":"2025-06-29T06:39:32","modified_gmt":"2025-06-29T06:39:32","slug":"after-the-murder-of-their-son-by-a-neo-nazi-a-california-familys-extraordinary-journey-turning-grief-into-hope","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/site.itshrt.com\/worldnews\/after-the-murder-of-their-son-by-a-neo-nazi-a-california-familys-extraordinary-journey-turning-grief-into-hope\/","title":{"rendered":"After the murder of their son by a neo-Nazi, a California family&#8217;s extraordinary journey turning grief into hope"},"content":{"rendered":"<p> <script async src=\"https:\/\/pagead2.googlesyndication.com\/pagead\/js\/adsbygoogle.js?client=ca-pub-6606220950177433\"\r\n     crossorigin=\"anonymous\"><\/script>\r\n<!-- ItShrt World News -->\r\n<ins class=\"adsbygoogle\"\r\n     style=\"display:block\"\r\n     data-ad-client=\"ca-pub-6606220950177433\"\r\n     data-ad-slot=\"1882483372\"\r\n     data-ad-format=\"auto\"\r\n     data-full-width-responsive=\"true\"><\/ins>\r\n<script>\r\n     (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});\r\n<\/script>\r\n<br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div id=\"\">\n<p>The silent stones tell both sides of an epic story, the life and death of <span class=\"link\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.cbsnews.com\/news\/blaze-bernstein-california-hate-crime-attack-parents-stand-up-for-their-son-48-hours\/\" target=\"_blank\" data-invalid-url-rewritten-http=\"\"> Blaze Bernstein<\/a><\/span>. They are a marker of a violent murder, but also a promise in the belief of a better future. A monument to the best of humanity, and the very worst of human behavior. <\/p>\n<p>You can find the stones in a tranquil corner of Borrego Park, in suburban Orange County, California. There are hundreds of them, hand-painted, with messages of tolerance, love and peace. &#8220;And they&#8217;re getting sent to us from all around the world,&#8221; says Gideon Bernstein. &#8220;It&#8217;s great to see the messaging. It&#8217;s always positive,&#8221; adds Gideon&#8217;s wife Jeanne Pepper.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"embed embed--type-image is-image embed--float-none embed--size-medium\">\n<p>      <span class=\"img embed__content\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/assets3.cbsnewsstatic.com\/hub\/i\/r\/2024\/09\/20\/6c69971d-b3d1-484d-93e2-ebfde787b608\/thumbnail\/620x349\/3bdec5402665b482890a3d19a2fad037\/blaze-bernstein-stone.jpg#\" alt=\"Blaze Bernstein stone \" height=\"349\" width=\"620\" class=\" lazyload\" srcset=\"https:\/\/assets3.cbsnewsstatic.com\/hub\/i\/r\/2024\/09\/20\/6c69971d-b3d1-484d-93e2-ebfde787b608\/thumbnail\/620x349\/3bdec5402665b482890a3d19a2fad037\/blaze-bernstein-stone.jpg 1x, https:\/\/assets2.cbsnewsstatic.com\/hub\/i\/r\/2024\/09\/20\/6c69971d-b3d1-484d-93e2-ebfde787b608\/thumbnail\/1240x698\/7e2d124d4fde3b8e13348db2060c9037\/blaze-bernstein-stone.jpg 2x\" loading=\"lazy\"\/><\/span><figcaption class=\"embed__caption-container\">\n<p>                  <span class=\"embed__caption\">A hand-painted stone with the likeness of Blaze Bernstein in Orange County, California&#8217;s Borrego Park.<\/span><\/p>\n<p>                  <span class=\"embed__credit\"><\/p>\n<p>                KCBS<\/p>\n<p>                          <\/span><br \/>\n              <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Jeanne and Gideon are the parents of Blaze Bernstein. On Jan. 2, 2018, then-19-year-old Blaze left his house. Sometime later that night,<span class=\"link\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.cbsnews.com\/news\/blaze-bernstein-murder-sam-woodward-trial-timeline\/\" target=\"_blank\" data-invalid-url-rewritten-http=\"\"> he was murdered<\/a><\/span> in Borrego Park, stabbed 28 times; his body buried there in a shallow, muddy grave.<\/p>\n<p>By all accounts, Blaze was an exceptional young man \u2014 an Ivy League student at the University of Pennsylvania, considering a career in medicine, a writer and budding chef. &#8220;I call him a unicorn,&#8221; Jeanne Pepper tells &#8220;48 Hours&#8221; correspondent Tracy Smith in an encore of\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.cbsnews.com\/video\/the-life-and-death-of-blaze-bernstein-1\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow\" data-invalid-url-rewritten-http=\"\">&#8220;The Life and Death of Blaze Bernstein,&#8221;<\/a>\u00a0 now streaming on Paramount+. <\/p>\n<p>Theirs is a loss they continue to live with to this day. &#8220;I think about Blaze all the time, because when I see things, I think to myself, &#8216;what would Blaze be doing now?'&#8221; says Pepper.<\/p>\n<p>Blaze died because of something far more fundamental. He was targeted, and according to investigators, slaughtered, because of who he<em> <\/em>was \u2013 a gay, Jewish man. Tony Rackaukas, then the Orange County district attorney, says this was <span class=\"link\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.cbsnews.com\/news\/blaze-bernstein-was-murder-of-ivy-league-student-a-hate-crime-48-hours\/\" target=\"_blank\" data-invalid-url-rewritten-http=\"\">a hate crime<\/a><\/span>. Authorities say Blaze&#8217;s killer was a neo-Nazi, a member of a small violent hate group called &#8220;Atomwaffen,&#8221; whose beliefs were deeply anti-LGBTQ + as well as virulently antisemitic. <\/p>\n<p>The killer is <span class=\"link\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.cbsnews.com\/news\/suspect-samuel-woodward-thought-slain-student-blaze-bernstein-was-hitting-on-him-report\/\" target=\"_blank\" data-invalid-url-rewritten-http=\"\">Samuel Woodward<\/a><\/span>. He had once been Blaze&#8217;s classmate back in high school. That&#8217;s about all Blaze and Woodward had in common, according to classmate Raiah Rofsky, who tells Smith, &#8220;They were so different \u2026 about as different as you could be.&#8221; Rofsky remembers Woodward&#8217;s unsettling presence. &#8220;He was very quiet &#8212; very withdrawn, didn&#8217;t really talk to people.&#8221; Rofsky tells Smith Woodward had a reputation. &#8220;Racist, homophobic, sexist.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>And when word spread that Blaze had gone missing while home in California on college winter break, and that the last person known to have seen him was Woodward, Rofsky&#8217;s reaction was immediate. &#8220;The only reason I could think of Sam meeting up with Blaze is because either number one, he wanted to hook up with him, or two, because he was planning to murder him.&#8221; That was January 2018. <\/p>\n<p>Detectives arrested Woodward just 10 days after Blaze disappeared in Borrego Park. <\/p>\n<p>It has been six painful years. There were COVID delays, and a revolving door of defense lawyers who raised questions with the court about Woodward&#8217;s mental health and ability to defend himself. It all left Jeanne Pepper and Gideon Bernstein frustrated and waiting for justice. &#8220;Slow justice is no justice,&#8221; says Pepper. &#8220;It&#8217;s not fair to victims and it&#8217;s not fair to the deceased.&#8221; In 2022, Woodward was found competent to stand trial. Finally, in April 2024, <span class=\"link\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.cbsnews.com\/news\/blaze-bernstein-samuel-woodward-trial-hate-crime\/\" data-invalid-url-rewritten-http=\"\">the murder trial began<\/a><\/span>.<\/p>\n<p>Remarkably, after all they have endured, the couple turned their grief into hope. They founded what they call &#8220;a kindness movement&#8221; \u2013 promoting &#8220;positivity&#8221; and random acts of kindness in Blaze&#8217;s name. They call their movement <a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/groups\/blazeitforward\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">&#8220;BlazeItForward.&#8221;<\/a><\/p>\n<figure class=\"embed embed--type-image is-image embed--float-none embed--size-medium\">\n<p>      <span class=\"img embed__content\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/assets2.cbsnewsstatic.com\/hub\/i\/r\/2024\/09\/20\/df712c67-a60c-444e-8f77-29c9b0d3f725\/thumbnail\/620x349\/601510426d9e64a3674fd8b83c412e8f\/bernstein-borregoark-stones.jpg#\" alt=\"Blaze Bernstein tributes stones \" height=\"349\" width=\"620\" class=\" lazyload\" srcset=\"https:\/\/assets2.cbsnewsstatic.com\/hub\/i\/r\/2024\/09\/20\/df712c67-a60c-444e-8f77-29c9b0d3f725\/thumbnail\/620x349\/601510426d9e64a3674fd8b83c412e8f\/bernstein-borregoark-stones.jpg 1x, https:\/\/assets2.cbsnewsstatic.com\/hub\/i\/r\/2024\/09\/20\/df712c67-a60c-444e-8f77-29c9b0d3f725\/thumbnail\/1240x698\/833a7b6a498520116d827df0ab3020f1\/bernstein-borregoark-stones.jpg 2x\" loading=\"lazy\"\/><\/span><figcaption class=\"embed__caption-container\">\n<p>                  <span class=\"embed__caption\">Some of the hundreds of hand-painted stones, most left by total strangers, in the memory of Blaze Bernstein at Borrego Park.<\/span><\/p>\n<p>                  <span class=\"embed__credit\"><\/p>\n<p>                CBS News<\/p>\n<p>                          <\/span><br \/>\n              <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>In Borrego Park, where Blaze took his last breath, there is that extraordinary response \u2014 the hundreds of hand-painted stones, most left by total strangers, in the memory of Blaze Bernstein.<\/p>\n<p>The silent stones speak of tolerance and Blaze&#8217;s transformation into a kind of martyr; his murder a marker of rabid hate. His spirit gives inspiration to LGBTQ + people, wherever they live and with whomever they love.<\/p>\n<p>Jeanne Pepper tells Smith, &#8220;Blaze&#8217;s life mattered and he has a legacy, to create good news, to inspire people to be better, to be kinder. And to work on repairing the world, because it&#8217;s not too late and we can make it better.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>On July 3, 2024, Sam Woodward was <span class=\"link\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.cbsnews.com\/losangeles\/news\/blaze-bernstein-killing-jury-finds-sam-woodward-guilty-of-hate-crime-murder-orange-county-california\/\" data-invalid-url-rewritten-http=\"\">found guilty of first-degree murder with a hate crime enhancement<\/a><\/span>. On Nov. 15, <span class=\"link\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.cbsnews.com\/losangeles\/news\/california-man-to-be-sentenced-for-hate-crime-killing-of-blaze-bernstein-orange-county-samuel-woodward\/\" target=\"_blank\" data-invalid-url-rewritten-http=\"\">Woodward was sentenced<\/a><\/span> to life in prison without parole.<\/p>\n<p>    <!-- data-recirc-source=\"queryly\" --><\/p>\n<aside class=\"component list recirculation component--type-recirculation \">\n<p><h3 class=\"component__title\">More from CBS News<\/h3>\n<\/p>\n<\/aside>\n<p>    <!-- tags --><\/p><\/div>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/pagead2.googlesyndication.com\/pagead\/js\/adsbygoogle.js?client=ca-pub-6606220950177433\"\r\n     crossorigin=\"anonymous\"><\/script>\r\n<!-- ItShrt World News -->\r\n<ins class=\"adsbygoogle\"\r\n     style=\"display:block\"\r\n     data-ad-client=\"ca-pub-6606220950177433\"\r\n     data-ad-slot=\"1882483372\"\r\n     data-ad-format=\"auto\"\r\n     data-full-width-responsive=\"true\"><\/ins>\r\n<script>\r\n     (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});\r\n<\/script>\r\n<br \/>\n<br \/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.cbsnews.com\/news\/blaze-bernstein-murder-sam-woodward-hate-crime-california-48-hours\/\">Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The silent stones tell both sides of an epic story, the life and death of Blaze Bernstein. They are a<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":35434,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[33],"tags":[456,2584,458],"class_list":["post-35433","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-us","tag-48-hours","tag-hate-crime","tag-murder"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v24.2 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>After the murder of their son by a neo-Nazi, a California family&#039;s extraordinary journey turning grief into hope - World News<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Blaze Bernstein was stabbed to death by Sam Woodward in what prosecutors called a hate crime. More than six painful years later, Blaze&amp;#039;s parents are honoring his memory.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/site.itshrt.com\/worldnews\/after-the-murder-of-their-son-by-a-neo-nazi-a-california-familys-extraordinary-journey-turning-grief-into-hope\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"After the murder of their son by a neo-Nazi, a California family&#039;s extraordinary journey turning grief into hope - World News\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Blaze Bernstein was stabbed to death by Sam Woodward in what prosecutors called a hate crime. More than six painful years later, Blaze&amp;#039;s parents are honoring his memory.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/site.itshrt.com\/worldnews\/after-the-murder-of-their-son-by-a-neo-nazi-a-california-familys-extraordinary-journey-turning-grief-into-hope\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"World News\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2025-06-29T06:39:32+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/assets1.cbsnewsstatic.com\/hub\/i\/r\/2024\/09\/18\/9c4edd06-7f12-4c92-92fd-c5ecd6bb19d1\/thumbnail\/1200x630\/24b9306fe0dfa23f6b82ca20a351dd55\/blaze-bernstein.jpg\" \/><meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/assets1.cbsnewsstatic.com\/hub\/i\/r\/2024\/09\/18\/9c4edd06-7f12-4c92-92fd-c5ecd6bb19d1\/thumbnail\/1200x630\/24b9306fe0dfa23f6b82ca20a351dd55\/blaze-bernstein.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1920\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"998\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"News\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:image\" content=\"https:\/\/assets1.cbsnewsstatic.com\/hub\/i\/r\/2024\/09\/18\/9c4edd06-7f12-4c92-92fd-c5ecd6bb19d1\/thumbnail\/1200x630\/24b9306fe0dfa23f6b82ca20a351dd55\/blaze-bernstein.jpg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"News\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"4 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/site.itshrt.com\/worldnews\/after-the-murder-of-their-son-by-a-neo-nazi-a-california-familys-extraordinary-journey-turning-grief-into-hope\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/site.itshrt.com\/worldnews\/after-the-murder-of-their-son-by-a-neo-nazi-a-california-familys-extraordinary-journey-turning-grief-into-hope\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"News\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/site.itshrt.com\/worldnews\/#\/schema\/person\/1d8ae7348e048cb7984f26b4dd818ff2\"},\"headline\":\"After the murder of their son by a neo-Nazi, a California family&#8217;s extraordinary journey turning grief into hope\",\"datePublished\":\"2025-06-29T06:39:32+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-06-29T06:39:32+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/site.itshrt.com\/worldnews\/after-the-murder-of-their-son-by-a-neo-nazi-a-california-familys-extraordinary-journey-turning-grief-into-hope\/\"},\"wordCount\":769,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/site.itshrt.com\/worldnews\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/site.itshrt.com\/worldnews\/after-the-murder-of-their-son-by-a-neo-nazi-a-california-familys-extraordinary-journey-turning-grief-into-hope\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/i1.wp.com\/assets1.cbsnewsstatic.com\/hub\/i\/r\/2024\/09\/18\/9c4edd06-7f12-4c92-92fd-c5ecd6bb19d1\/thumbnail\/1200x630\/24b9306fe0dfa23f6b82ca20a351dd55\/blaze-bernstein.jpg?w=1200&resize=1200,630&ssl=1\",\"keywords\":[\"48 Hours\",\"Hate Crime\",\"Murder\"],\"articleSection\":[\"U.S.\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/site.itshrt.com\/worldnews\/after-the-murder-of-their-son-by-a-neo-nazi-a-california-familys-extraordinary-journey-turning-grief-into-hope\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/site.itshrt.com\/worldnews\/after-the-murder-of-their-son-by-a-neo-nazi-a-california-familys-extraordinary-journey-turning-grief-into-hope\/\",\"name\":\"After the murder of their son by a neo-Nazi, a California family's extraordinary journey turning grief into hope - World News\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/site.itshrt.com\/worldnews\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/site.itshrt.com\/worldnews\/after-the-murder-of-their-son-by-a-neo-nazi-a-california-familys-extraordinary-journey-turning-grief-into-hope\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/site.itshrt.com\/worldnews\/after-the-murder-of-their-son-by-a-neo-nazi-a-california-familys-extraordinary-journey-turning-grief-into-hope\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/i1.wp.com\/assets1.cbsnewsstatic.com\/hub\/i\/r\/2024\/09\/18\/9c4edd06-7f12-4c92-92fd-c5ecd6bb19d1\/thumbnail\/1200x630\/24b9306fe0dfa23f6b82ca20a351dd55\/blaze-bernstein.jpg?w=1200&resize=1200,630&ssl=1\",\"datePublished\":\"2025-06-29T06:39:32+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-06-29T06:39:32+00:00\",\"description\":\"Blaze Bernstein was stabbed to death by Sam Woodward in what prosecutors called a hate crime. More than six painful years later, Blaze&amp;#039;s parents are honoring his memory.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/site.itshrt.com\/worldnews\/after-the-murder-of-their-son-by-a-neo-nazi-a-california-familys-extraordinary-journey-turning-grief-into-hope\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/site.itshrt.com\/worldnews\/after-the-murder-of-their-son-by-a-neo-nazi-a-california-familys-extraordinary-journey-turning-grief-into-hope\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/site.itshrt.com\/worldnews\/after-the-murder-of-their-son-by-a-neo-nazi-a-california-familys-extraordinary-journey-turning-grief-into-hope\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/i1.wp.com\/assets1.cbsnewsstatic.com\/hub\/i\/r\/2024\/09\/18\/9c4edd06-7f12-4c92-92fd-c5ecd6bb19d1\/thumbnail\/1200x630\/24b9306fe0dfa23f6b82ca20a351dd55\/blaze-bernstein.jpg?w=1200&resize=1200,630&ssl=1\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/i1.wp.com\/assets1.cbsnewsstatic.com\/hub\/i\/r\/2024\/09\/18\/9c4edd06-7f12-4c92-92fd-c5ecd6bb19d1\/thumbnail\/1200x630\/24b9306fe0dfa23f6b82ca20a351dd55\/blaze-bernstein.jpg?w=1200&resize=1200,630&ssl=1\",\"width\":1200,\"height\":630},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/site.itshrt.com\/worldnews\/after-the-murder-of-their-son-by-a-neo-nazi-a-california-familys-extraordinary-journey-turning-grief-into-hope\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/site.itshrt.com\/worldnews\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"After the murder of their son by a neo-Nazi, a California family&#8217;s extraordinary journey turning grief into hope\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/site.itshrt.com\/worldnews\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/site.itshrt.com\/worldnews\/\",\"name\":\"World News\",\"description\":\"World News\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/site.itshrt.com\/worldnews\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/site.itshrt.com\/worldnews\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/site.itshrt.com\/worldnews\/#organization\",\"name\":\"World News\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/site.itshrt.com\/worldnews\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/site.itshrt.com\/worldnews\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/site.itshrt.com\/worldnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/13\/2025\/01\/cropped-download.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/site.itshrt.com\/worldnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/13\/2025\/01\/cropped-download.png\",\"width\":581,\"height\":581,\"caption\":\"World News\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/site.itshrt.com\/worldnews\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\"}},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/site.itshrt.com\/worldnews\/#\/schema\/person\/1d8ae7348e048cb7984f26b4dd818ff2\",\"name\":\"News\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/site.itshrt.com\/worldnews\/author\/admin\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"After the murder of their son by a neo-Nazi, a California family's extraordinary journey turning grief into hope - World News","description":"Blaze Bernstein was stabbed to death by Sam Woodward in what prosecutors called a hate crime. More than six painful years later, Blaze&amp;#039;s parents are honoring his memory.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/site.itshrt.com\/worldnews\/after-the-murder-of-their-son-by-a-neo-nazi-a-california-familys-extraordinary-journey-turning-grief-into-hope\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"After the murder of their son by a neo-Nazi, a California family's extraordinary journey turning grief into hope - World News","og_description":"Blaze Bernstein was stabbed to death by Sam Woodward in what prosecutors called a hate crime. More than six painful years later, Blaze&amp;#039;s parents are honoring his memory.","og_url":"https:\/\/site.itshrt.com\/worldnews\/after-the-murder-of-their-son-by-a-neo-nazi-a-california-familys-extraordinary-journey-turning-grief-into-hope\/","og_site_name":"World News","article_published_time":"2025-06-29T06:39:32+00:00","og_image":[{"url":"https:\/\/assets1.cbsnewsstatic.com\/hub\/i\/r\/2024\/09\/18\/9c4edd06-7f12-4c92-92fd-c5ecd6bb19d1\/thumbnail\/1200x630\/24b9306fe0dfa23f6b82ca20a351dd55\/blaze-bernstein.jpg","type":"","width":"","height":""},{"url":"https:\/\/assets1.cbsnewsstatic.com\/hub\/i\/r\/2024\/09\/18\/9c4edd06-7f12-4c92-92fd-c5ecd6bb19d1\/thumbnail\/1200x630\/24b9306fe0dfa23f6b82ca20a351dd55\/blaze-bernstein.jpg","width":1920,"height":998,"type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"News","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_image":"https:\/\/assets1.cbsnewsstatic.com\/hub\/i\/r\/2024\/09\/18\/9c4edd06-7f12-4c92-92fd-c5ecd6bb19d1\/thumbnail\/1200x630\/24b9306fe0dfa23f6b82ca20a351dd55\/blaze-bernstein.jpg","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"News","Est. reading time":"4 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/site.itshrt.com\/worldnews\/after-the-murder-of-their-son-by-a-neo-nazi-a-california-familys-extraordinary-journey-turning-grief-into-hope\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/site.itshrt.com\/worldnews\/after-the-murder-of-their-son-by-a-neo-nazi-a-california-familys-extraordinary-journey-turning-grief-into-hope\/"},"author":{"name":"News","@id":"https:\/\/site.itshrt.com\/worldnews\/#\/schema\/person\/1d8ae7348e048cb7984f26b4dd818ff2"},"headline":"After the murder of their son by a neo-Nazi, a California family&#8217;s extraordinary journey turning grief into hope","datePublished":"2025-06-29T06:39:32+00:00","dateModified":"2025-06-29T06:39:32+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/site.itshrt.com\/worldnews\/after-the-murder-of-their-son-by-a-neo-nazi-a-california-familys-extraordinary-journey-turning-grief-into-hope\/"},"wordCount":769,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/site.itshrt.com\/worldnews\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/site.itshrt.com\/worldnews\/after-the-murder-of-their-son-by-a-neo-nazi-a-california-familys-extraordinary-journey-turning-grief-into-hope\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/i1.wp.com\/assets1.cbsnewsstatic.com\/hub\/i\/r\/2024\/09\/18\/9c4edd06-7f12-4c92-92fd-c5ecd6bb19d1\/thumbnail\/1200x630\/24b9306fe0dfa23f6b82ca20a351dd55\/blaze-bernstein.jpg?w=1200&resize=1200,630&ssl=1","keywords":["48 Hours","Hate Crime","Murder"],"articleSection":["U.S."],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/site.itshrt.com\/worldnews\/after-the-murder-of-their-son-by-a-neo-nazi-a-california-familys-extraordinary-journey-turning-grief-into-hope\/","url":"https:\/\/site.itshrt.com\/worldnews\/after-the-murder-of-their-son-by-a-neo-nazi-a-california-familys-extraordinary-journey-turning-grief-into-hope\/","name":"After the murder of their son by a neo-Nazi, a California family's extraordinary journey turning grief into hope - World News","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/site.itshrt.com\/worldnews\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/site.itshrt.com\/worldnews\/after-the-murder-of-their-son-by-a-neo-nazi-a-california-familys-extraordinary-journey-turning-grief-into-hope\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/site.itshrt.com\/worldnews\/after-the-murder-of-their-son-by-a-neo-nazi-a-california-familys-extraordinary-journey-turning-grief-into-hope\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/i1.wp.com\/assets1.cbsnewsstatic.com\/hub\/i\/r\/2024\/09\/18\/9c4edd06-7f12-4c92-92fd-c5ecd6bb19d1\/thumbnail\/1200x630\/24b9306fe0dfa23f6b82ca20a351dd55\/blaze-bernstein.jpg?w=1200&resize=1200,630&ssl=1","datePublished":"2025-06-29T06:39:32+00:00","dateModified":"2025-06-29T06:39:32+00:00","description":"Blaze Bernstein was stabbed to death by Sam Woodward in what prosecutors called a hate crime. More than six painful years later, Blaze&amp;#039;s parents are honoring his memory.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/site.itshrt.com\/worldnews\/after-the-murder-of-their-son-by-a-neo-nazi-a-california-familys-extraordinary-journey-turning-grief-into-hope\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/site.itshrt.com\/worldnews\/after-the-murder-of-their-son-by-a-neo-nazi-a-california-familys-extraordinary-journey-turning-grief-into-hope\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/site.itshrt.com\/worldnews\/after-the-murder-of-their-son-by-a-neo-nazi-a-california-familys-extraordinary-journey-turning-grief-into-hope\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/i1.wp.com\/assets1.cbsnewsstatic.com\/hub\/i\/r\/2024\/09\/18\/9c4edd06-7f12-4c92-92fd-c5ecd6bb19d1\/thumbnail\/1200x630\/24b9306fe0dfa23f6b82ca20a351dd55\/blaze-bernstein.jpg?w=1200&resize=1200,630&ssl=1","contentUrl":"https:\/\/i1.wp.com\/assets1.cbsnewsstatic.com\/hub\/i\/r\/2024\/09\/18\/9c4edd06-7f12-4c92-92fd-c5ecd6bb19d1\/thumbnail\/1200x630\/24b9306fe0dfa23f6b82ca20a351dd55\/blaze-bernstein.jpg?w=1200&resize=1200,630&ssl=1","width":1200,"height":630},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/site.itshrt.com\/worldnews\/after-the-murder-of-their-son-by-a-neo-nazi-a-california-familys-extraordinary-journey-turning-grief-into-hope\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/site.itshrt.com\/worldnews\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"After the murder of their son by a neo-Nazi, a California family&#8217;s extraordinary journey turning grief into hope"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/site.itshrt.com\/worldnews\/#website","url":"https:\/\/site.itshrt.com\/worldnews\/","name":"World News","description":"World News","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/site.itshrt.com\/worldnews\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/site.itshrt.com\/worldnews\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/site.itshrt.com\/worldnews\/#organization","name":"World News","url":"https:\/\/site.itshrt.com\/worldnews\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/site.itshrt.com\/worldnews\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/site.itshrt.com\/worldnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/13\/2025\/01\/cropped-download.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/site.itshrt.com\/worldnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/13\/2025\/01\/cropped-download.png","width":581,"height":581,"caption":"World News"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/site.itshrt.com\/worldnews\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"}},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/site.itshrt.com\/worldnews\/#\/schema\/person\/1d8ae7348e048cb7984f26b4dd818ff2","name":"News","url":"https:\/\/site.itshrt.com\/worldnews\/author\/admin\/"}]}},"magazineBlocksPostFeaturedMedia":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/i1.wp.com\/assets1.cbsnewsstatic.com\/hub\/i\/r\/2024\/09\/18\/9c4edd06-7f12-4c92-92fd-c5ecd6bb19d1\/thumbnail\/1200x630\/24b9306fe0dfa23f6b82ca20a351dd55\/blaze-bernstein.jpg?w=150&resize=150,150&ssl=1","medium":"https:\/\/i1.wp.com\/assets1.cbsnewsstatic.com\/hub\/i\/r\/2024\/09\/18\/9c4edd06-7f12-4c92-92fd-c5ecd6bb19d1\/thumbnail\/1200x630\/24b9306fe0dfa23f6b82ca20a351dd55\/blaze-bernstein.jpg?w=300&resize=300,300&ssl=1","medium_large":"https:\/\/i1.wp.com\/assets1.cbsnewsstatic.com\/hub\/i\/r\/2024\/09\/18\/9c4edd06-7f12-4c92-92fd-c5ecd6bb19d1\/thumbnail\/1200x630\/24b9306fe0dfa23f6b82ca20a351dd55\/blaze-bernstein.jpg?w=768&resize=768,0&ssl=1","large":"https:\/\/i1.wp.com\/assets1.cbsnewsstatic.com\/hub\/i\/r\/2024\/09\/18\/9c4edd06-7f12-4c92-92fd-c5ecd6bb19d1\/thumbnail\/1200x630\/24b9306fe0dfa23f6b82ca20a351dd55\/blaze-bernstein.jpg?w=1024&resize=1024,1024&ssl=1","1536x1536":"https:\/\/i1.wp.com\/assets1.cbsnewsstatic.com\/hub\/i\/r\/2024\/09\/18\/9c4edd06-7f12-4c92-92fd-c5ecd6bb19d1\/thumbnail\/1200x630\/24b9306fe0dfa23f6b82ca20a351dd55\/blaze-bernstein.jpg?w=1536&resize=1536,1536&ssl=1","2048x2048":"https:\/\/i1.wp.com\/assets1.cbsnewsstatic.com\/hub\/i\/r\/2024\/09\/18\/9c4edd06-7f12-4c92-92fd-c5ecd6bb19d1\/thumbnail\/1200x630\/24b9306fe0dfa23f6b82ca20a351dd55\/blaze-bernstein.jpg?w=2048&resize=2048,2048&ssl=1","colormag-highlighted-post":"https:\/\/i1.wp.com\/assets1.cbsnewsstatic.com\/hub\/i\/r\/2024\/09\/18\/9c4edd06-7f12-4c92-92fd-c5ecd6bb19d1\/thumbnail\/1200x630\/24b9306fe0dfa23f6b82ca20a351dd55\/blaze-bernstein.jpg?w=392&resize=392,272&ssl=1","colormag-featured-post-medium":"https:\/\/i1.wp.com\/assets1.cbsnewsstatic.com\/hub\/i\/r\/2024\/09\/18\/9c4edd06-7f12-4c92-92fd-c5ecd6bb19d1\/thumbnail\/1200x630\/24b9306fe0dfa23f6b82ca20a351dd55\/blaze-bernstein.jpg?w=390&resize=390,205&ssl=1","colormag-featured-post-small":"https:\/\/i1.wp.com\/assets1.cbsnewsstatic.com\/hub\/i\/r\/2024\/09\/18\/9c4edd06-7f12-4c92-92fd-c5ecd6bb19d1\/thumbnail\/1200x630\/24b9306fe0dfa23f6b82ca20a351dd55\/blaze-bernstein.jpg?w=130&resize=130,90&ssl=1","colormag-featured-image":"https:\/\/i1.wp.com\/assets1.cbsnewsstatic.com\/hub\/i\/r\/2024\/09\/18\/9c4edd06-7f12-4c92-92fd-c5ecd6bb19d1\/thumbnail\/1200x630\/24b9306fe0dfa23f6b82ca20a351dd55\/blaze-bernstein.jpg?w=800&resize=800,445&ssl=1","colormag-default-news":"https:\/\/i1.wp.com\/assets1.cbsnewsstatic.com\/hub\/i\/r\/2024\/09\/18\/9c4edd06-7f12-4c92-92fd-c5ecd6bb19d1\/thumbnail\/1200x630\/24b9306fe0dfa23f6b82ca20a351dd55\/blaze-bernstein.jpg?w=150&resize=150,150&ssl=1","colormag-featured-image-large":"https:\/\/i1.wp.com\/assets1.cbsnewsstatic.com\/hub\/i\/r\/2024\/09\/18\/9c4edd06-7f12-4c92-92fd-c5ecd6bb19d1\/thumbnail\/1200x630\/24b9306fe0dfa23f6b82ca20a351dd55\/blaze-bernstein.jpg?w=1400&resize=1400,600&ssl=1","colormag-elementor-block-extra-large-thumbnail":"https:\/\/i1.wp.com\/assets1.cbsnewsstatic.com\/hub\/i\/r\/2024\/09\/18\/9c4edd06-7f12-4c92-92fd-c5ecd6bb19d1\/thumbnail\/1200x630\/24b9306fe0dfa23f6b82ca20a351dd55\/blaze-bernstein.jpg?w=1155&resize=1155,480&ssl=1","colormag-elementor-grid-large-thumbnail":"https:\/\/i1.wp.com\/assets1.cbsnewsstatic.com\/hub\/i\/r\/2024\/09\/18\/9c4edd06-7f12-4c92-92fd-c5ecd6bb19d1\/thumbnail\/1200x630\/24b9306fe0dfa23f6b82ca20a351dd55\/blaze-bernstein.jpg?w=600&resize=600,417&ssl=1","colormag-elementor-grid-small-thumbnail":"https:\/\/i1.wp.com\/assets1.cbsnewsstatic.com\/hub\/i\/r\/2024\/09\/18\/9c4edd06-7f12-4c92-92fd-c5ecd6bb19d1\/thumbnail\/1200x630\/24b9306fe0dfa23f6b82ca20a351dd55\/blaze-bernstein.jpg?w=285&resize=285,450&ssl=1","colormag-elementor-grid-medium-large-thumbnail":"https:\/\/i1.wp.com\/assets1.cbsnewsstatic.com\/hub\/i\/r\/2024\/09\/18\/9c4edd06-7f12-4c92-92fd-c5ecd6bb19d1\/thumbnail\/1200x630\/24b9306fe0dfa23f6b82ca20a351dd55\/blaze-bernstein.jpg?w=575&resize=575,198&ssl=1"},"magazineBlocksPostAuthor":{"name":"News","avatar":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/e85cf08852547781a5f631f3713dbb5197ed4b54e32ae19c7d5769b8c8504897?s=96&d=mm&r=g"},"magazineBlocksPostCommentsNumber":false,"magazineBlocksPostExcerpt":"The silent stones tell both sides of an epic story, the life and death of Blaze Bernstein. They are a","magazineBlocksPostCategories":["U.S."],"magazineBlocksPostViewCount":18,"magazineBlocksPostReadTime":4,"magazine_blocks_featured_image_url":{"full":["https:\/\/i1.wp.com\/assets1.cbsnewsstatic.com\/hub\/i\/r\/2024\/09\/18\/9c4edd06-7f12-4c92-92fd-c5ecd6bb19d1\/thumbnail\/1200x630\/24b9306fe0dfa23f6b82ca20a351dd55\/blaze-bernstein.jpg?w=1200&resize=1200,630&ssl=1",1200,630,false],"medium":["https:\/\/i1.wp.com\/assets1.cbsnewsstatic.com\/hub\/i\/r\/2024\/09\/18\/9c4edd06-7f12-4c92-92fd-c5ecd6bb19d1\/thumbnail\/1200x630\/24b9306fe0dfa23f6b82ca20a351dd55\/blaze-bernstein.jpg?w=300&resize=300,300&ssl=1",300,300,false],"thumbnail":["https:\/\/i1.wp.com\/assets1.cbsnewsstatic.com\/hub\/i\/r\/2024\/09\/18\/9c4edd06-7f12-4c92-92fd-c5ecd6bb19d1\/thumbnail\/1200x630\/24b9306fe0dfa23f6b82ca20a351dd55\/blaze-bernstein.jpg?w=150&resize=150,150&ssl=1",150,150,false]},"magazine_blocks_author":{"display_name":"News","author_link":"https:\/\/site.itshrt.com\/worldnews\/author\/admin\/"},"magazine_blocks_comment":0,"magazine_blocks_author_image":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/e85cf08852547781a5f631f3713dbb5197ed4b54e32ae19c7d5769b8c8504897?s=96&d=mm&r=g","magazine_blocks_category":"<a href=\"#\" class=\"category-link category-link-33\">U.S.<\/a>","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/site.itshrt.com\/worldnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/35433","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/site.itshrt.com\/worldnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/site.itshrt.com\/worldnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/site.itshrt.com\/worldnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/site.itshrt.com\/worldnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=35433"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/site.itshrt.com\/worldnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/35433\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/site.itshrt.com\/worldnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/35434"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/site.itshrt.com\/worldnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=35433"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/site.itshrt.com\/worldnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=35433"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/site.itshrt.com\/worldnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=35433"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}