Posted on 07/15/2002 6:55:50 AM PDT by MizSterious
By Alex Roth
STAFF WRITER
July 14, 2002
A week ago, Janet Roehr, a neighbor of David Westerfield's, testified at his murder trial about some of his routines, including his occasional habit of parking his motor home in front of his house.
Her testimony lasted 15 to 20 minutes, but what she said wasn't as important as what she did: She smiled at Westerfield.
Roehr was among a parade of defense witnesses who consider themselves friends of Westerfield's and who seem to like him, even as he stands accused of kidnapping and killing 7-year-old neighbor Danielle van Dam, who disappeared from her bedroom in Sabre Springs in February.
At various times during the trial, those witnesses have grinned at Westerfield, winked at him and laughed in his direction. One witness gave the 50-year-old design engineer the thumbs-up sign while leaving the courtroom.
Whatever else Westerfield's attorneys have accomplished so far, they have succeeded to some degree in humanizing their client. Legal experts said the importance of this achievement shouldn't be underestimated in a case in which the jury must decide not only guilt or innocence but also, potentially, whether he deserves the death penalty if convicted.
"They give the picture of Westerfield being a pretty normal middle-aged, middle-class guy," said San Diego defense lawyer Robert Grimes, who has been following the case. "It makes the jury wonder: Could this person really have done this horrible crime?"
During the guilt phase of a trial, rules of evidence place limits on character evidence ? that is, testimony about a defendant's personality. Nonetheless, a jury can get some feel for a defendant by sizing up his friends and evaluating how much those people stick up for him.
Several neighbors, some camping buddies and a female friend Westerfield hung out with at a Poway bar have testified. In large part, they were "people who seem like nice, ordinary citizens," said San Diego lawyer Mike Still, a former prosecutor.
One of the defense's most powerful witnesses was Westerfield's former girlfriend Susan L., who cried while acknowledging she still cares about Westerfield but hadn't seen him since shortly before his February arrest. She dated Westerfield for about three years after his divorce from his second wife. (Her last name is not being published to guard the identity of her daughter, who also testified.)
Her affection for Westerfield seemed genuine, although she admitted on cross-examination that he changed when he drank alcohol, that he once became "forceful" when drunk, and that he once waited outside her house.
In some ways she was a terrific witness for both the defense and the prosecution. For the defense, she made the point that Westerfield is a man who can attract a woman who seems sweet and normal. For the prosecution, she illustrated that Westerfield might have a dark side that goes beyond his alleged habit of collecting child pornography.
In addition to showing the jury that Westerfield has friends who care about him, his legal team has succeeded in raising questions about some of the prosecution's theories in the case, some legal experts say.
For instance:
Prosecutors say Westerfield engaged in suspicious behavior by embarking on a meandering, two-day journey in his motor home on the weekend Danielle disappeared. He went from Coronado to the Imperial County desert and back again, traveling back roads and getting stuck in the sand twice along the way, he said.
But several defense witnesses testified that within the esoteric subculture of San Diego County motor-home enthusiasts, Westerfield's behavior wasn't necessarily that weird. It's not uncommon to drive back roads as a way of taking in the scenery and avoiding high winds on Interstate 8, they said.
Prosecutors noted that Westerfield, who is compulsively neat and organized, took off that weekend without putting away his garden hose, which was uncoiled on the lawn. This shows he was in a hurry, they say.
But Westerfield's former girlfriend said it wasn't unusual for him to toss down the hose in the front yard before leaving on a motor-home trip. She also said the motor home got stuck in the sand during several camping trips she took with him.
Prosecutors called a volunteer who testified that his cadaver-sniffing dog reacted to a side compartment of Westerfield's motor home during a search at a police impound lot.
Under questioning by the defense, he revealed that he never told police about his dog's behavior and that he was much less definitive about his dog's reaction in an e-mail he sent to the dog's breeder several weeks later.
Prosecutors say child pornography found on computer disks in Westerfield's office prove he has a sexual affinity for young girls.
But a computer expert hired for the defense suggested that at least some of the pornographic images might have been downloaded by Westerfield's 18-year-old son.
Meanwhile, the prosecution ? which has succeeded in presenting a powerful body of forensic evidence linking fibers, blood and hair from the girl to Westerfield's house, motor home and sport utility vehicle ? stumbled once or twice in the past week.
Prosecutor Jeff Dusek leaned on several defense witnesses in a way that might cost him some credibility with the jury, legal observers say. And he may have come across as unnecessarily mean-spirited when confronting witnesses whose testimony conflicted with the prosecution's theory of the case.
"Prosecutors wear the white hat," said Still, the former prosecutor. "Don't beat up on witnesses you don't need to beat up on."
But Dusek had his stellar moments, too. His questioning of the defense's star witnesses ? insect expert David Faulkner ? was one of the most effective, and important, cross-examinations of the entire trial.
On direct examination, Faulkner, an entomologist with the Museum of Natural History, said flies on the girl's body indicated it was dumped at a time when Westerfield was already under 24-hour police surveillance.
But on cross-examination by Dusek, Faulkner appeared to contradict himself, admitting that strange weather patterns in February ? as well as the imprecision of the science ? made it impossible to know precisely how early the flies had infested the girl's body.
At the start of the trial, lead defense attorney Steven Feldman promised that the insect expert's testimony would exonerate Westerfield.
"Science is going to come to Mr. Westerfield's rescue," Feldman told the jury.
But by the time Faulkner left the witness stand, many of the jurors had stopped taking notes. They will be the final arbiters of whether Faulkner's testimony was relevant, and whether it made any sense at all.
We mustn't say B****h. It has such a negative connotation. The correct term for the likes of BEASTon is Slutjackal
YOU DID. WE DON'T WANT IT OR NEED IT. LEARN TO BE CIVILIZED THEN COME BACK. Better yet go to the TNF they will worship you, build a shrine in your honor.
I am not familiar with the area of where her body was found, but sandy soil will draw the moisture right out of a person. I know because where we live is a desert area and sandy. The minute we put our hands in the soil to do gardening our hands become cracked and dry.
Here is a site that tells what I am saying.
http://www.cnn.com/TECH/9612/17/mummies/
Mummies in silks found in China desert
December 17, 1996 Web posted at: 9:15 p.m. EST (CNN) -- A pair of mummies estimated to be nearly 2,000 years old have been discovered in the desolate desert sands of northwest China. The bodies of a man and a woman were wrapped in colorful silk clothes, leading archaeologists to believe they were members of the local nobility during the Han Dynasty that flourished from 202 BC to 220 AD. The bodies were not embalmed, but the dry desert air has preserved the remains, archaeologists said. The area, on the edge of the Takla Makan Desert, once lay on the "silk road," the ancient route linking China with the West.
Here is what O.J. has to do with this thread: Does Jamieson believe that O.J. is innocent or guilty of the murders for which he was tried and found not guilty?
Your answer will be a basis for evaluating your judgement.
Advice that would be better given to your cohorts in the "DW didn't do it" camp.
Anyone on the "other side" who forgets the slightest bit of testimony and asks for clarification on my side is villified as "lazy" and knocked for "not backing up" assertions and the like. The other side asks for memory refreshers and is treated most courteously.
When someone proposes a reasonable view of evidence that is contrary to an opinion held by a DW defender they are lambasted. It is unbelievable and I agree with Defiant, it reflects poorly on Free Republic.
Greg Weston and Defiant have gotten to you too, eh?
There's more irrationalililty but those are some examples. Wanna yell at me, now?
You have been reasonable, not necessarily agreeable, but reasonable. Find it hard to understand why you'd link up with such as daffy Deffy.
I appreciate your stating that I seem reasonable. I like to think so, too. I think I have become less agreeable on these threads as some comments being made have struck me as so ludicrous, and some have been so rude to me, personally, that I agree my tone has shifted from a stance of one who feels they are debating with respect being given on both sides, as that is manifestly not the case.
At that, I am still planning on adding my voice and I shall strive to be polite.
LEARN TO BE CIVILIZED...
Advice that would be better given to your cohorts in the "DW didn't do it" camp.
I think EVERYONE on these threads needs to remind themselves to be more civilized towards each other.
Anyone on the "other side" who forgets the slightest bit of testimony and asks for clarification on my side is villified as "lazy" and knocked for "not backing up" assertions and the like.
Anyone on the "other side" who has only heard snippets of the testimony and tells everyone else THEY KNOW EXACTLY what the testimony was (even though they have gotten it wrong) and when asked to provide the transcript text they are referring to 'to back up their claim', refuses to do so has established a lack of credibility. Others tell them this to their face.
These posters DEMAND the DW-not guilty crowd provide proof, while calling these people names, accusing them of being brain dead, etc. When they are told that proof has already been established and discussed for days on previous threads, they refuse to go back, read it or accept it.
The other side asks for memory refreshers and is treated most courteously.
That is because they ASK POLITELY. The DW-HANGEMHI group start off calling people names, going into ego discussions of how much smarter they are, how long they have been on FR, and calling everyone else an idiot, then demand someone instantly provide proof of something. Not a good way to get cooperation of anyone.
After DEFIANT had calmed down yesterday and started acting like an adult, he had questioned what was said about Motion to suppress/RE: 3rd party exculpatory evidence, I politely listed the links to those motions. His next reply to me was telling me how stupid I was, and why did I DEMAND he read them. I did no such thing. I told him I thought they might help answer his question. (real problem was they did answer his question and he didn't like the answer)
When someone proposes a reasonable view of evidence that is contrary to an opinion held by a DW defender they are lambasted.
First, the word REASONABLE VIEW. You mean the NANCY GRACE view?. No, many of us do not find that REASONABLE.
As to a CONTRARY OPINION, when a majority of posters on a thread hold a contrary opinion, and you/me jump in (without reading previous posts/doing research/without going through all the information and discussions they already have) and propose this opinion, we most likely are going to have what seems like an ambush. What is hard to see is that these posters are trying to be helpful. They see you as being under-informed. They want to help you see what they have seen.
It is hard not to 'react' in a negative way. No matter which side you are on, no matter who thinks they are the INFORMED ones, and who they think is UNINFORMED. None of us likes being told we are UN-INFORMED.
It is unbelievable and I agree with Defiant, it reflects poorly on Free Republic.
Here, I agree with you mostly. No matter WHO is doing it, the personal attacks, snide remarks, it does reflect poorly on Free Republic.
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