Posted on 08/13/2002 10:12:33 PM PDT by FresnoDA
SIGNONSANDIEGO STAFF
and WIRE SERVICES
August 13, 2002
The fourth day of deliberations in the David Westerfield trial has ended with no conclusion by the jury. The jury will resume deliberations Wednesday morning at the San Diego County Courthouse. Earleir today, jurors asked to hear Westerfield's only recorded explanation of what he was doing the weekend 7-year-old Danielle van Dam was kidnapped.
Superior Court Judge William Mudd said he was granting a request from the jury for a tape recording and transcript of the taped interview Westerfield gave to police interrogation specialist Paul Redden on Feb. 4, two days after Danielle's disappearance.
During the interview, Westerfield makes a reference to "we" as he describes his meandering trip through San Diego and Imperial counties on Feb. 2 and Feb. 3.
"The little place we, we were at was just a little small turnoff-type place," Westerfield said.
Westerfield, 50, could face the death penalty if convicted of murder, kidnapping and a special circumstance allegation that the killing of Danielle van Dam occurred during the commission of kidnapping.
He is also accused of the misdemeanor possession of child pornography.
Jurors are in their fourth day of deliberations.
Mudd's disclosure came during a 10 a.m. open hearing on a request from KFMB-AM 760 to let River Stillwood, an assistant radio producer for talk show host Rick Roberts, back into the courtroom to cover the trial.
"She's out and will remain out and will not be permitted in for any live proceedings... because she is the representative of an individual who takes great glee and delight shoving it in this court's face," Mudd said.
Mudd ejected Stillwood from the courtroom on Thursday after asking her to tell him who told Roberts about the details of a Wednesday exchange between Mudd and the attorneys in the case during a sealed hearing.
Stillwood told Mudd that she didn't know who gave Roberts the information. On the air, Roberts later said he had received a call from a source in the courthouse.
The court is conducting an internal investigation, but cannot compel Roberts and Stillwood to name their source, Mudd said.
Stillwood can still sit in the pressroom and watch the video feed of any court activity, Mudd said.
KFMB was welcome to send someone else to sit in the courtroom, so long as the person was representing the radio station and not Roberts, he said.
KFMB's attorney Joann Rezzo argued that the disclosure did not violate the defendant's right to a fair trial. She also argued that Stillwood didn't give him "the source of the leak" because she didn't know who it was.
Before Mudd made his ruling, he invited comments from prosecutor Jeff Dusek, who managed only a wry remark.
"My inclination is to comment, but on advice of counsel, I I will submit," Dusek said, gesturing to his fellow prosecutor, Woody Clarke.
Defense attorney Robert Boyce told Mudd he was concerned about the integrity of proceedings. "They broadcast it, they knew what they were doing," Boyce said.
He called it "just another effort to sensationalize these proceedings."
Mudd told the media attorneys he welcomed the opportunity to make a "full and complete record" of his decision to eject Stillwood.
In his comments, Mudd made it clear he was still angry with KFMB television's decision to include a high school yearbook photo of Neal Westerfield during a telecast of the son of the defendant's testimony. Mudd had ordered that no television or print images of the adult, who is now 19, be transmitted.
The judge's inclination was to ban both the station's radio and TV representatives from the trial.
"Frankly, they seem to be the two networks in this community that just don't seem to get it," he said.
However, after his wife advised him to "sleep in it, " he gave the matter "serious thought," Mudd said.
He quoted a line from a Supreme Court decision in 1976 involving a press restraint issue in Nebraska.
" The extraordinary protections afforded by the First Amendment carry with them something in the nature of a fiduciary duty to exercise the protected rights responsibly--a duty widely acknowledged but not always observed by editors and publishers," Mudd said. "It is not asking too much to suggest that those who exercise First Amendment rights in newspapers or broadcasting enterprises direct some effort to protect the rights of an accused to a fair trial by unbiased jurors. "
Mudd said he was troubled by the host's decision to broadcast the information, knowing it was from a closed hearing.
The judge wasn't impressed by the host's justification that the general public was already aware of the issue, and that Stillwood was ignorant of the source.
He said the host wasn't conducting a search for the truth, but a grab for ratings. He also took the opportunity to lash out at "idiots from LA talk stations," who broadcast an afternoon program from a media compound outside the County courthouse. He said the members of the talk station were "acting like teen-agers" in front of the courthouse.
The judge acknowledged he could not control such behavior but could control his own courtroom.
The judge said officials from KFMB must be taking "great glee in shoving it in this court's face."
Fred D'Ambrosi, news director for KFMB-TV and Radio, said his television station showed only a high school yearbook photo of Westerfield's son.
"We didn't shoot him in court, which was the judge's order," D'Ambrosi said.
Regarding River Stillwood, D'Ambrosi said the issue was important because of the First Amendment and a free press. He added that he was not in charge of the Rick Roberts program.
"We're just trying to report the news and uphold the First Amendment," D'Ambrosi said. "If (Mudd) can ban River Stillwood, he can ban anybody." The news director suggested that the judge was angry because he didn't like the story that was reported.
D'Ambrosi said he had never spoken to Mudd, and called his reading of the situation "totally inaccurate."
Mudd said he had done a 180-degree turnaround on the issue of allowing cameras and reporters in the courtroom since deciding to allow Court TV to cover the trial live.
I think you should make another day.
IIRC, there were statements from people at the bar that Brenda's vehicle was parked in a different spot at the END of the NIGHT, than it was when she first arrived.
I don't believe this was brought in as testimony, though.
There was speculation that she went by her house (cause she knew Danielle was already missing, and wanted to see if she had come back from her usual 'runaway from home' routine. The routine the boys said she pulled before. Wouldn't come home until someone came and found her.
Trying again...
I think you should make her wait another day.
What ever you are smoking, I want some too.
There's a mandatory 48 hour cooling-off period before you can be added to any lists.
Especially if her name is Monica, err ... Juanita (or was it Eileen ?).
With regard to knocking-out of front teeth, I saw a reference to that being a "satanic" practice. Could be that this extends to incisors also. I'm guessing wildly.
David is 50. Nothing new about his knob.
(sorry, I'm a slut for a straight line)
The airfare to Amsterdam during the off-season is quite reasonable. Hotels rates there are always higher than a kite, but the girls are pretty and there are lots of flowers. The public transportation and the toilets work remarkably well -- much better than anything we have in the states.
You know why the buildings along the canals are so characteristically tall and narrow?
Taxes. They used to be taxed on their "footprint".
That TO: area on top (above YOUR REPLY) will have the name of the poster you have replied to. You can put any valid screenname or combination of names, seperated by commas, you want. You can even use ALL as a name.
When you log into FR, just pick the MY COMMENTS and it will show all posts recently posted to/by YOU. You will see a recent post on it if there is a new thread and we pinged you. Kinda cool, huh!
When you reply to any post, down below you is the text of the POST you are replying to. CUT AND PASTE IT. To have it in ITALICS, just put "<" and "I" and ">" at the beginning (leave off double ticks) and "<" "/I" and ">" at the end .
Put them together, I can't here as they won't show on the screen if I do.
Same thing to start a new paragraph, using P instead of I. To BOLD use B, to Underline use U. The "/" infront of I or B or U turns it off. These are all explained in HTML bootcamp. Do a search for that thread on FR and all will be explained. The ones I showed you above are just the beginning ones. Tip of the iceberg so to speak.
Faulkner testified for Dusek 196 times. The DA claims a conviction rate of over 90%
Sounds to me like ( 196 x 0.90) = 177 cases for appeal.
DATE: October 31 NAME: *SAMHAIN; ALL HALLOWS' EVE; HALLOWEEN; NOVEMBER EVE WITCHCRAFT: Rituals to contact the dead SATANISTS: Sexual and blood rituals with animal or humans & animal or human sacrificeDATE: December 21/22 NAME: YULE; WINTER SOLSTICE; WITCHCRAFT: Rituals celebrating the rebirth of the sun SATANISTS: Sexual rituals, animal or human
DATE: February 2 NAME: IMBOLIC; IMBOK; CANDLEMAS; OIMELE; LADY DAY; BRIGID DAY WITCHCRAFT: Sexual rituals; Celtic triple goddess Brigid honored. SATANISM: Sexual rituals, human
DATE: MARCH 20/21 NAME: Spring Equinox; Vernal Equinox WITCHCRAFT: This is a fertility sabbat. Pagans celebrate the coming of fertility of the earth; Sexual rituals celebrated by various groups. SATANISM: Orgies held; Animal or human sacrifices
DATE: April 30 NAME: *BELTANE; MAY EVE; ROODMAS DAY; WALPURGISNACHT WITCHCRAFT: Rituals focusing on the love between male & female. In fact, many pagan handcastings (weddings) take place at this sabbat. Rituals celebrating the fertility of the Mother Goddess (Earth) are carried out. SATANISTS: Blood rituals; Animal or human sacrifices
DATE: JUNE 21 NAME: SUMMER SOLSTICE; MIDSUMMER'S EVE; WITCHES: Bonfire rituals SATANISTS: Orgies; Animal or human sacrifices
DATE: AUGUST 1 NAME: LUGNASADH (Named for Celtic Solar god Lugh);LAMMAS DAY WITCHES: Harvest rituals SATANISTS: Animal or Human sacrifice
DATE: SEPTEMBER 21 to 23 (Date varies annually) NAME: AUTUMN EQUINOX WITCHES: Some covens have rituals reenacting Pluto or Hades (grim god of death) forcefully carrying of Persephone (young goddess of life) to the underworld. SATANISTS: Sexual orgies and or animal and human sacrifice.
EVERYONE WELCOME kerensky,domestice and teledude to the threads.
HERE is the most current PING LIST for anyone that starts a new thread.
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