CHESTER COUNTY, Pa. (KYW Newsradio) — The murder trial has begun for a Philadelphia woman accused of stabbing and killing a student at Lincoln University. Prosecutors say it was planned and premeditated, but defense attorneys say it was self-defense.
Nydira Smith, 40, was charged with first- and third-degree murder in the stabbing death of 21-year-old Jawine Evans in a dorm on Lincoln’s campus on Feb. 16, 2022.
Prosecutor Justin Roberts told the jury two groups of students "weren’t getting along," including Smith’s brother, Malik Stevens. However, it was a fist fight, according to Roberts, until Smith showed up with a weapon.
He said Smith, armed with a steak knife, drove with her sister from Mount Airy to Lincoln University in Southern Chester County, in his words, "to finish the fight." Videos show her with the knife raised, entering the fray, according to the prosecutor.
However, Smith’s attorney, Vincent Difabio, said the video doesn’t show how the fight started. He also claimed Smith acted in self-defense, going to Lincoln that night to get her brother safely off campus.
Difabio said Smith called campus police to tell them she was on her way, which he said established she wasn’t planning to hurt anyone. In his telling, she yelled, "Stop, you’re not here to fight, you’re here to get an education," but one of the men punched her.
The defense attorney said she swung the knife wildly in an effort to protect herself and her brother when she unintentionally struck Evans in the throat.
The trial could last up to two weeks.