During the kidnapping trial, ABC News reports Ming Sen Shiue attempted to attack Mary Stauffer. Fortunately, he was detained before he could reach her. At the murder trial, however, Shiue managed to smuggle knife into the courtroom. Author Eileen Biernat, who wrote a book about the kidnapping and murder, said while Stauffer was on the stand, Shiue ” … jumped up from the defense table, flew across the courtroom and held a knife to her throat.”
In an interview with ABC News, Stauffer said, “The knife must have been very sharp, because I didn’t feel the pain. I felt the skin separate, and the blood began to flow … the cut came from down in the center of my chin up to the side of my mouth, and then out into my cheek.” Although she was seriously injured, and required 62 stitches, Stauffer survived the attack. Shiue was ultimately convicted on two counts of kidnapping and one count of murder. He was subsequently sentenced to 40 years in prison.
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Interestingly, it was eventually revealed that Shiue’s supposed motive for abducting Stauffer was fabricated. Although Stauffer was his ninth-grade algebra teacher, there was no indication the grade he received in her class was unexpectedly low or that it prevented him from receiving a scholarship. As reported by ABC News, Shiue excelled in academics and sports. So much so that his classmates voted him, “most likely to succeed.”
