ST. CROIX COUNTY, Wis. — The man accused of fatally stabbing a Stillwater teenager and injuring four others during a tubing trip on Wisconsin's Apple River will stand trial for homicide, a St. Croix County judge ruled Friday.
In August, 52-year-old Nicolae Miu was charged with first-degree intentional homicide and four counts of attempted first-degree intentional homicide after he was accused of violently attacking a group of tubers on Saturday, July 30 and killing 17-year-old Isaac Schuman.
At Friday's hearing, which was meant to determine whether the state had sufficient evidence to take the case to trial, Lt. Brandie Hart with the St. Croix County Sheriff's Office testified that Miu told police he was attacked and that he acted in self defense.
Hart testified that Miu said he didn't have his knife on him when he was interviewed after the attack, and said that the other group of people had a small folding knife and a kitchen knife.
But Hart said Miu's wife told police that Miu told her his knife had been taken from him during the incident.
The state had Hart walk through the details of a bystander video that captured some of the attack, which hasn't yet been made public. In the video, Hart said Miu was seen running up to a group of and grabbing onto their tube. Several people approached Miu and starting yelling at him to go away and leave.
Hart testified that Miu struck a female in the face, which wasn't visible in the video. After Miu struck the female, Hart said several people who had congregated nearby began to attack Miu. After he was pushed, Hart said video showed Miu stab one of the victims in the abdomen.
When questioned by defense attorney Corey Chirafisi, one of two attorneys who helped get a full acquittal for Kyle Rittenhouse last year, Hart said based on her viewing of the video, Miu didn't appear verbally or physically aggressive toward the group at the start of their encounter.
"Prior to people converging on him, did [Miu] ever threaten anyone with the knife," Chirafisi asked. Hart replied "no."
Judge Michael Waterman ended the hearing confirming that the state presented sufficient evidence for a felony trial, and ordered Miu's arraignment for Sept. 8 at 1 p.m.
He is currently being held on $1 million bond at the St. Croix County Jail.
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