Westerfield's Fate In Hands Of Jury: VERDICT WATCH BEGINS in Van Dam Murder Case

CourtTV ^ | August 8, 2002 | CourtTV

[FresnoDA]

Jury's hands After two months of hearing evidence, jurors have begun deliberating the fate of David Westerfield, who is accused of kidnapping and killing 7-year-old Danielle van Dam

[JudyB1938]

I just wasn't looking for something so witty!

[UCANSEE2]

I still can not believe any of you believe the parents (either or both) killed this child.....

Why would both VD's lie to police for 17 hours while most parents would feel that telling the TRUTH might enable POLICE to FIND their daughter. The first 8-12 hours are critical.

Why would the parents state, "well, we still have our two boys" so soon?

Why would the parents say "If we had it all to do over again, there isn't a thing we would change!" ???????

[KnutCase]

Police would not be concerned about sugars...only available DNA

[nycgal]

(I'm an artiste)

What medium/media? I've recently returned to painting after many years in the computer field.

[UCANSEE2]

They did not kill her

But you are sure DW did? (I am assuming this is your position)

There are not cases of parents killing their children? 1 of them , All of them.

Would you like me to name the WOMEN that have killed their children, then lied about it to police?

[dread78645]

Google-ing DNA testing, found some interesting reading.

[KnutCase]

Ipaint with acrylics......seascapes and landscapes

[nycgal]

They also did no blood spatter analysis which would have told them under what circumstances the blood came to rest on a particular surface.

[CedarDave]

If the blood didn't match Feldman's defense would have had experts galore testyfying it didn't. Instead he was silent.

Why? Are the scenarios we're talking about here (blood swipes vs. stains, drool vs. blood) too low on the probability scale to be taken seriously by any except conspiracy theorists and murder writers, and therefore too unlikely to be given serious consideration by the jury? Were any of these alternate theories even brought up by the defense, or with the large amount of other inconsistencies in the prosecution's case, would it have been self defeating for Feldman to bring this up? Interesting question for analysis after a verdict.

[Green]

Can blood splatter analysis be done if the spot is on a fabric material? (asking because I have no idea)

[small_l_libertarian]

Nobody said it was with him on the trip. I have no idea where the jacket was. Here's a plausible scenario, though.

Rumor had it that Brenda possibly "did" a guy in the parking lot at Dad's. That would require a quick clean-up before heading back into the bar, home, whatever (if only so you don't stick to your clothes...ewwww!). So, the jacket's handy, she wipes her hands, mouth or (ewwwww again) nether regions with the jacket. Bingo - DWs DNA in 3 places (kind of weird places) on the jacket and DNA that is a match with "Danielle's profile" in one stain.

Coulda happened. Just as likely as Stealth Ninja Dave sneaking into someone else's house when they're at home and stealing their kid.

[Green]

The questions you are asking about the defense addressing the DNA is the only thing that really has me puzzled about Feldman. I have wondered over and over why the defense put up nothing against the DNA testing. He had no DNA experts on to counter the prosecutions DNA tests (or if he did, I do not remember them).

[CAPPSMADNESS]

yes, blood spatter analysis can be done on cloth type mediums

[nycgal]

Ipaint with acrylics......seascapes and landscapes

I'm taking a class in painting with acrylics in a coule of weeks at the local college. We didn't have acrylics when I was an art major in HS. It was oils, watercolor or tempera then.

[UCANSEE2]

But if what you say is true,what about the bugs,if the bugs work for Westerfield they work for the girl's Father.

The 'bugs' testimony indicated Danielle's body was DUMPED around the 16th. Right?

DW was under surveillance by police, and had a GPS attached (by police and unknown to DW) to his SUV. HE COULD NOT HAVE DUMPED THE BODY.

Damon, however, was FREE to run ALL OVER THE ENTIRE STATE of California, in his BLUE VAN, with his BUDDY FROM FLORIDA. He had ample opportunity to drive by DEHESA RD. on the 16th. After the 16TH he was driving around in the DESERT handing out flyers to volunteers and telling everyone they needed to search CLOSER BACK TO SABRE SPRINGS (DEhesa rd, between the desert and Sabre Springs. get it.)

That they were TOO FAR OUT IN THE DESERT. Of course, he was out there. THEN after the 18th of so, DAMON Gets RID OF THE BLUE VAN. And his BUDDY from FLORIDA leaves town to go home.

So, if Damon had Danielle's body wrapped or locked in up an old FRIG, or stuck in a CAVE (yes, there are caves in that area, you can look it up), and word was they COULDN'T COLLECT on INSURANCE (nor prove much more on DW) without A BODY, then you just go move it to where SOMEONE CAN FIND IT. Hmmm.....

So, Now that the body has been dumped on , say the 12th or 14th, or 16th, and you have unwrapped it, or taken it out of the old frig or cave and it is open to insects, the bugs do their thing.

SEE?

[NatureGirl]

NO PRINTS IN DANIELLE"S ROOM
DO YOU BUY THAT?

I don't. I found that very unusual. My daughter left hand prints everywhere - heck, it's a kid thing, a common complaint from parents!

Weren't the doors to the closet the mirror-type? One of them was open a little ways. There were NO fingerprints on that nice, smooth surface?

Hard to believe, eh?

[UCANSEE2]

If they said one of the stains was DWs blood then it couldn't have been gone (cleaned) by the drycleaning.

You are correct. I don't have a problem, BTW, with someone destroying a theory of mine. It is called the LEARNING PROCESS, or the DISCOVERY PROCESS. It helps winnow out the ideas that turn out fruitless.

So, we must conclude that the Danielle stain and the DW stain were still there, and the other stains.

We must conclude the DRYCLEANER's don't bother informing their customers about stains, nor do they really look for them.

Sounds like a pretty crappy drycleaning service to me.

[crystalk]

When DW took this jacket to the dry cleaner, the woman there says she saw no stains on it-- IT WAS HER JOB to look for any and note them down for special attention. Nor did DW note any to her, as customer usually does if he knows of any.

Yet, when police got the jacket, 3 stains of apparent blood and another stain of SOME kind, were readily apparent visually to the police evidence technician.

Isn't it obvious that these stains were put on the jacket well after the disappearance of Danielle, and in fact after the jacket was cleaned and returned to DW?

[Jaded]

Be sure and go to the Stealth Ninja Dave site and vote in the Jury Room

Stealth Ninja Dave

**FREE NINJA DAVE**FREE NINJA DAVE**FREE NINJA DAVE**

[KnutCase]

Get with it. The world needs more artists. There's a difference between an artist and a painter.

An artist takes a glob of yellow paint and turns it into the sun.

A painter takes the sun and turns it into a glob of yellow paint.