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The Honolulu Advertiser

Posted on: Saturday, March 5, 2005

Circuit Court date set in Kaua'i landlord killing

Advertiser Staff

LIHU'E, Kaua'i — Raymond Ard, who is charged with murder and attempted murder for attacks on his landlord and his own stepson, waived a preliminary hearing in the case yesterday and will be arraigned March 15 in 5th Circuit Court.

The 40-year-old Ard kept his head bowed and his eyes down during yesterday's District Court hearing. He is represented by Deputy Public Defender James Itamura.

Ard is accused of fatally stabbing retired doctor Jon S. Kerns, 64, on Sunday at a cottage on the victim's Waimea Valley property. Ard's 15-year-old stepson, who is disabled and unable to speak, received minor injuries.

Documents filed with the court indicate that Ard has been treated in the past for mental disorders. Witnesses said that in the days before the attack, he was talking about demons and referred to Kerns as Satan.

Ard, a California native who worked for several years as a Waimea Valley taro farmer, is being held in lieu of $200,000 bail.