HUDSON, Wis. — Attorneys will have one last chance on Wednesday to convince a Wisconsin jury whether 54-year-old Nicolae Miu should go to prison for murder.
Miu took the stand on Tuesday to defend himself for the stabbings that occurred on the Apple River near New Richmond on July 30, 2022. Isaac Schuman, 17, was killed and four others, all in their 20s, were injured: Dante Carlson, Tony Carlson, A.J. Martin and Ryhley Mattison.
Miu is charged with first-degree intentional homicide in Schuman’s death and four counts of attempted first-degree intentional homicide.
RELATED: Who is Nicolae Miu, man on trial for killing 1, stabbing 4 on Apple River?
The state seeks to prove Miu was the aggressor that day, while the defense is arguing he stabbed the five people in self-defense.
Miu pleaded not guilty to all charges in September 2022.
WCCO’s live coverage is set to start Wednesday at 8 a.m. You can watch via the video player above, CBS News Minnesota, Pluto TV or the CBS News app on your phone or connected TV.
Day 7 recap
Miu took the stand on Tuesday and told the court he was afraid for his life before the deadly knife attack.
Video from that day shows an encounter between Miu, a group of teenagers and another group of men and women in their 20s escalating to violence.
Miu said the teens first harassed him before members of both groups attacked him.
RELATED: Body camera video of Nicolae Miu’s arrest shown during day 4 of Apple River stabbing trial
Prosecutors said Miu had spooked the kids, then chose to stay and took things too far.
Miu confirmed Tuesday he took out his knife before he was ever punched.
“I was beginning to be afraid,” Miu said.
“What was it about that moment where everybody is that made you so fearful that you took out your knife?” asked defense attorney Aaron Nelson.
“I was surrounded, they were yelling, they had just pushed me,” Miu said.
But Miu told police after being arrested that it was the teenagers who had knives, and he wrestled away one to defend himself.
“I lied,” Miu said. “I totally lied about the knife.”
RELATED: Video of Nicolae Miu’s police interview shown during Apple River stabbing trial: “I feared for my life”
And this was after police told him someone had died.
Joe Tamburino, a defense attorney not associated with the case, says even though Miu effectively shared his fear with the jury, he ultimately didn’t help himself.
“I think for the most part of this trial, the defense has had the upper hand, but that changed (on Tuesday),” Tamburino said. “What’s going to be tough for him is all the lapse in memory as well as he admitted to lying to the police. I mean, his first story to the police is quite different than what he said on the stand, and he really didn’t have a good explanation for that.”
- In:
- Homicide
- Wisconsin
- Trial
- Stabbing
