Trial for man suspected in couple’s death to begin

Attorneys will begin opening statements Monday afternoon in the trial of a Long Beach man accused of helping others kill a Newport Beach couple at sea in 2004.

John Fitzgerald Kennedy, 43, a suspected Long Beach gang member, is accused of helping Skylar Deleon and another man kill Newport Beach couple Tom and Jackie Hawks by securing them to the anchor of their boat, Well Deserved, and throwing them overboard in November 2004.

Kennedy is charged with two murders with enhancements for doing it for financial gain. Prosecutors claim Kennedy was going to cash in on the killings through Skylar Deleon, who planned on emptying out the Hawkses’ bank accounts after their deaths.

Defense attorneys said they plan to argue that Kennedy did not participate in the slayings and that the only evidence linking him to the crime is a few phone calls and the testimony of suspected criminals.

Kennedy’s trial is expected to last up to a month. If convicted on all charges, prosecutors said they will try for the death penalty.

— Joseph Serna