When questioned by police about the murder of Karen Ertell, accused killer Vernon Bartley was meek and downcast until he was asked to describe the actual killing, a detective testified in court this morning.

At that point, Bartley “sat up in his seat” and physically re-enacted choking Ertell, said HPD Detective Theodore Coons.
“He was kind of reliving that. He smiled and he gave a kind of brief, silent laugh” when describing the murder, Coons said.
Bartley, now 17, is being tried as an adult on a charge of murdering Ertell, 58, his Ewa Beach neighbor, in May 2007, when he was 15 years old.
The testimony came during a hearing on a defense motion to suppress Bartley’s confession on grounds that he did not understand his constitutional rights when he agreed to be interviewed about the crime.
Coons said he fully explained those rights to Bartley, whose mother was also present during the interview.
“I was surprised that Mr. Bartley made a statement,” Coons told defense lawyer Jeffrey Hawk.
Asked why he was surprised, Coons said, “It was a heinous crime. I didn’t think anyone would want to talk about it.”
The hearing, before Circuit Judge Virginia Crandall, continues this afternoon.