Dad charged in stabbing of 5-month-old Kona boy
By Kevin Dayton
Advertiser Big Island Bureau
HILO, Hawai'i — A 26-year-old Kona man accused of stabbing his infant son in the stomach area Friday morning remained in custody yesterday after being charged with attempted second-degree murder.
Police believe Jerry Francis Liquie, of Holualoa, used a knife in the assault on his 5-month-old son, Jacques Liquie. The baby suffered a punctured colon in the attack, said Kona Police Det. Brandon Konanui.
Liquie
The baby was in stable condition after surgery at Kona Community Hospital, but was flown to Kapi'olani Medical Center for Women & Children in Honolulu as a precaution against infection, Konanui said. Kapi'olani would be better equipped to care for the infant if there were such an infection, he said.
Konanui declined to disclose what might have prompted the attack, but said Jerry Liquie has been receiving assistance from state Department of Health mental-health workers.
The infant's 23-year-old mother told police that Jerry Liquie awakened her Friday at about 11:30 a.m. and told her, "I thought baby was hurting you; I tried to kill him," according to an affidavit filed in Kona District Court.
Fire rescue personnel arrived to take the baby to Kona Community Hospital, and a firefighter who responded to the call told police he heard Liquie say he stabbed the baby with a hunting knife, according to the affidavit.
Both of the baby's parents went to the Kona hospital emergency room after the stabbing, and hospital officials contacted police shortly before 12:45 p.m. to report the attack.
Liquie was arrested at the hospital, and police took the child into protective custody. The baby was later released to state Child Welfare Services workers.
Liquie moved to Hawai'i from Korea when he was 17 and has been working as a retail store employee, Konanui said. The court affidavit indicated he attended Pearl City High School, and completed the 11th grade there.
Liquie refused to make a statement to police, but made statements to others that led police to arrest him, Konanui said.
Bond for Liquie was set at $100,000, and a preliminary hearing was scheduled for Oct. 18.
Reach Kevin Dayton at kdayton@honoluluadvertiser.com or (808) 935-3916.
