DNA ties killer to Jerseyan's rape-murder
eartha...@yahoo.com
Scotch Plains woman was slain at a rest stop in Arkansas in 2000
Friday, July 22, 2005
BY JOE RYAN
Newark Star-Ledger
Investigators have used DNA evidence to link a Montana man already
serving a life sentence to the rape and murder of a Scotch Plains woman
at an Arkansas rest stop nearly five years ago, authorities said
yesterday.
DNA detected on the body of Kristin Laurite, who was found stabbed to
death in August 2000 along Interstate 40, was matched to DNA from the
prisoner, Ronald James Ward, 38, said Sheriff Mark Flowers, of Conway
County, Ark.
Laurite, who would have turned 30 this year, was alone and making a
cross-country move from New Jersey to California when she pulled off
the highway northwest of Little Rock to walk her two dogs.
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The unsolved murder had haunted Laurite's parents, who posted her
picture on two billboards along Interstate 40 asking motorists if they
knew who might have killed her.
Yesterday's news delivered some solace to the family.
"We are obviously very, very glad that this person is not out on the
street and cannot kill again," said Laurite's mother, Lynn DiBenedetto,
55, of Scotch Plains.
Still, the investigative breakthrough brought the old pain surging
back.
"It's like opening up another wound," said Laurite's father, Edward
Laurite, 55, of Morris Plains. "But I had believed at this point I was
going to go to my grave not knowing who killed her, so I guess it's a
positive in that sense."
Ward is serving life plus 10 years for murdering a homeless man in
October 2000.
Authorities also have linked him to at least two other homicides in
California that same year, one involving a homeless woman, the other a
disabled woman.
Ward was not a suspect before the DNA match and has not been charged
with Laurite's death, Flowers said. The sheriff said there's no rush to
complete the investigation.
"It ain't like he's walking the streets," he said.
Laurite's body was found Aug. 25, 2000, beside a desolate pond about
300 yards behind the rest stop. She was naked and had been stabbed 11
times.
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In 1997, a truck driver named Arthur Joe Cotton was found with a bullet
in his head at the same roadside stop. Two half brothers from West
Virginia were convicted of his murder, and the Arkansas Highway and
Transportation Department closed the area nearly three years after
Laurite's death.
Laurite's parents unsuccessfully sued the state of Arkansas in 2003,
blaming its highway department for failing to provide adequate security
at the oasis.
Flowers and Conway County Prosecutor Tom Tatum said yesterday they
haven't ruled out the possibility that Ward had an accomplice in
Laurite's murder.
"Next month will be the five-year anniversary of my daughter's death,"
DiBenedetto said. "We look forward to justice being served."
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
eartha...@yahoo.com
Police Make Break In High-Profile Murder Case
Thursday July 21, 2005 11:28pm
Reporter: Christina Muñoz
Posted By: Amanda Manatt
KATV
Break Made in Kristin Laurite Case
Morrilton, AR - Five years after a New Jersey woman was killed at a
Morrilton rest stop, police now think they know who did it.
The rest stop where 25-year-old Kristin Laurite's body was found along
Interstate 40 has since been shut down, but the case has remained open.
Now, Conway County authorities may have what they have been looking for
to close the case as well.
(Conway County Sheriff Mark Flowers) "Day before yesterday we got a
break in the case."
Conway County Sheriff Mark Flowers says a match in a national DNA
database has linked a man to the rape and murder of 25-year-old Kristin
Laurite.
(Flowers) "We got a DNA match. DNA from her that matched a suspect who
was incarcerated in another state."
Channel Seven has learned that 38-year-old Ronald James Ward is the
primary suspect for Laurite's murder. Ward is already serving a life
sentence in Montana for murdering a homeless man in October of 2000.
Ward has also been linked to at least two other homicides in
California, one involving a homeless woman, the other a disabled woman.
All four murders, which happened in a four month time period, were
reportedly brutal and horrific scenes.
(Flowers) "A very violent death. She had been stabbed to death,
numerous stab wounds."
Montana Department of Corrections says a woman by the name of Hattie
Ann Baker was also convicted of tampering with evidence in the Montana
murder case.
Baker, who is on probation and living in West Virginia, is now also
being interviewed in connection with the Laurite case.
Sheriff Flowers says thousands of hours have been sent by dozens of
agencies all across the country, all trying to put an end to a highly
publicized case.
Channel Seven spoke with Kristin's mother, who says she's very happy to
hear the news, especially since the five year anniversary of her
daughter's death is just a month away. She also says she is a bit
overwhelmed and very emotional.