A Jewish man was murdered because he was gay, prosecutors have said.

Blaze Bernstein, 19, disappeared in January and was found a week later buried in shallow grave in a park near his parents' home in Lake Forest, California.

On Thursday, Samuel Woodward, one of Mr Berinstein's classmates who is suspected of murdering him, had his murder charge amended to reflect the hate crime aspect of the alleged killing.

 Mr Woodward denies the charge. His next hearing is due to take place on August 22.

In June, Mr Bernstein's mother Jeanne Pepper wrote for the JC  about how she and her husband turned to tikun olam, "the practice of loving people and of repairing our world", after their son's death.

"To lose a child to violence and horror could certainly make us cynical people, looking at the world through the lens of bitterness and contempt," she wrote.

"But I learned from this nightmare that how I react to what happened to our family and my son is my choice. I can choose life, or I can choose something much less.

"I know now that it doesn’t have to be the last good chapter in the story of my life: it can be the impetus for the greatest acts of kindness that people can perform."

Mr Woodward, 20, was reportedly a member of Atomwaffen Division, an neo-Nazi group.

The Anti-Defamation League's director Jonathan Greenblatt said: “This case is a stark reminder of how white supremacist organizations sweep up young recruits into their violent and hateful culture, with potentially deadly consequences.

“The hate crime enhancement sends a strong message that there are severe penalties for violent crimes motivated by hate.”