Westfield Record-Press, The (NJ)



Westfield Record-Press, The (NJ)

May 19, 2006

Inmate charged in Laurite killing Suspect identified by DNA

Author: ANNA BOGDANOWICZ THE RECORD-PRESS

SCOTCH PLAINS - Almost six years after the brutal rape and killing of 25-year-old township resident Kristin Laurite at a rest stop in Arkansas, police have charged a Montana prison inmate with first degree murder.

Ronald Ward, 39, was charged with the crime Friday, according to John Riedel, chief deputy prosecutor at Arkansas' 15th judicial district. Ward is currently serving a life sentence plus 10 years for another murder of a man in southwestern Montana, about two months after Laurite was murdered.

Though police had linked Ward to the murder last July through a DNA match, it took 10 more months of investigation to charge him, said Riedel.

In August 2000, Laurite was found stabbed to death 300 yards behind a rest stop off I-40 near Little Rock. She had been traveling across country alone and had stopped to walk her two dogs, according to police.

In 2003, Laurite's family filed a lawsuit against Arkansas, saying the state was negligent because cameras at the rest stop were not working when Laurite was killed, according to an article written for the Web site of an Arkansas television station. The claim was denied, according to the article, but the rest stop was closed in 2003 "because of safety concerns."

Police officials in Conway County, Ark. have called the rape and murder one of the most brutal murders the region has seen in years. Police, FBI and Laurite's family searched for the killer for years, posting rewards and putting up billboards.

While police were investigating the Laurite case, DNA samples from two murder scenes in California where Ward is also a suspect furthered his identification, said Riedel.

'They were similar to this (Laurite's) scene," said Riedel. A homeless woman and a disabled woman were murdered in those cases, though California officials have not yet charged Ward.

As police interviewed Ward over the past four months, he repeatedly denied being anywhere near I-40 during the time of the murder, said Riedel. But the investigation led to credit card receipts which place him near the area around the time of the killing.

Ward had refused to be extradited to Arkansas, said Riedel, so a governor's warrant is being sought to bring him into the state for processing.

Anna Bogdanowicz is a staff writer for The Record-Press. She can be reached at (732) 396-4204 or abogdanowicz@.

Copyright 2006 The Westfield Record-Press. All Rights Reserved.

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