Judge Mudd Refuses Sequester Plea: Westerfield Jury Verdict In Sep? (Aug. 16th Verdict Watch)

Union Trib ^ | August 15, 2002 | Jeff Dillion/Steve Perez

[FresnoDA]

Judge denies defense motion to sequester jury

By Jeff Dillon and Steve Perez
SIGNONSANDIEGO

August 15, 2002

Arguing that media coverage was creating a "lynch mob mentality" that could pressure jurors to return a guilty verdict, the defense attorney for David Westerfield today asked the judge yet again to sequester the jury.

While the jury completed its first week of deliberations without a verdict, Superior Court Judge William Mudd denied the request and a related motion to "pull the plug" on television and radio coverage of the courtroom proceedings, but agreed to set aside a private room for jurors to take breaks. Defense attorney Steven Feldman had argued that reports suggested jurors felt like they were under siege, unable to leave their deliberating room, go to lunch or walk home without being watched or followed.

"We have no assurance that they are not be intimidated ... by the presence of the media," Feldman told Mudd during a morning hearing. "We can think of only one fair resolution to that: Get the jury out of harm's way."

 

'Broccoli heads'

He cited an incident earlier in the week in which radio talk show hosts from KFI-AM 640 in Los Angeles broadcast from outside the courthouse, waving stalks of broccoli around and reportedly calling jurors "broccoli heads" for being unable to return a quick guilty verdict.

Westerfield, 50, could face the death penalty if convicted of kidnapping 7-year-old Danielle van Dam from her family's Sabre Springs home on Feb. 2 and killing her. Jurors are in their sixth day of deliberations.

Lead prosecutor Jeff Dusek disagreed with Feldman's interpretations of the jury's complaints.

"Whether or not any guilty verdict in this case would be based on a siege mentality or the meida I think is pure speculation and utterly false in this case," Dusek said.

What the jurors had complained about was being watched all the time, he said.

"That hardly equates to being under siege," he said.

 

Trust in the jury

Mudd dismissed most of Feldman's concerns, saying that the jurors had only asked a bailiff to keep reporters a little bit farther away, though an alternate juror reported that he or she had been followed to his car.

Media coverage has diminished since the jurors began deliberating, the judge said.

"The synopsis programs on the two local TV networks are not in place," he said. "The talking heads are doing nothing but speculating about what the jury may or may not be thinking."

Mudd said there were no signs that jurors were being harassed by the public, especially since their names and faces haven't been publicized.

"We've all sat here and picked this jury, know their makeup and know their dedication to this cause," Mudd said. "I would prefer to think that any verdict they make in this case would be based upon the evidence."

Sequestering the jury also wouldn't protect them from any public reaction to the verdict, Mudd said.

 

'The activities of a few'

"The tragedy is, the majority of the people in this courtroom are abiding by the court's orders and working very hard to insure they, meaning the media, do not cause something to occur that is going to cause a mistrial," Mudd said. "Not all of them feel that way as is very apparent with the activities of a few."

Mudd took aim at two radio program hosts from Los Angeles who he previously described as "idiots."

"I suppose it's entertainment out of LA. I hope it stays in LA," he said. "The shows those two gentlemen put on made the court incredulous as to what they were attempting to do."

Mudd also announced:

 

• The jury asked to review the recall testimony of prosecution witness Jennifer Shen, a criminalist with the San Diego Police Department.

  On July 9, Shen's testimony interrupted presentation of defense witnesses. Shen, a San Diego police criminalist, testified about re-examining a group of fibers she had collected from Westerfield's 4Runner in February.

  The orange acrylic fibers, found in various places inside the SUV, were the same color and fabric as a fiber tangled in a plastic necklace that Danielle was wearing when authorities found her body in a hollow off Dehesa Road, Shen testified at the time.

  All the fibers looked identical under a microscope and appeared to have the same chemical makeup when tested using infrared technology, she said.

  Shen said the fibers seem "most likely to have come from something that was very loosely knit," such as a sweater or blanket.

   

• Reporters will no longer be allowed to ask questions of the court's bailiff and clerk.

  "You folks are going to deal with my PR person. You're going to leave my bailiff and my clerk alone," Mudd told reporters in the courtroom. "One statement leads to 60 questions that they're not going to answer and neither am I."

  Mudd decided to turn the daily updates over to the court's public information officer after deciding that an informal system set up to have a bailiff or court clerk provide updates had failed.

  "There was a simple note that they started at 9, they left at 4 left you chomping on bit to get copies," He said. "You're welcome to them, they'll be available as soon as we gett the minute order."

  Reporters and members of the public will not be informed immediately about notes passed by the jury, Mudd said. The judge said he had procedure to follow, that includes notifying the attorneys involved in the case about the note and determining the appropriate response.

  "This is a capital case and you go by steps," Mudd said.

   

[fatima]

My dear Judy,I click on your thread,I do not what it is,love you much even though you went to bed ,fatima.

[Jaded]

Some of the blood was sent to Bode Technology. Mitchell Holland was the Bode person that testified around June 27.

[domestice]

Dread, from the beginning I knew something was not right w/ this whole case! Like others here, it really bothered me that so many possible suspects were ruled out..so quickly. I could see if DW had a sex offender history, then hey, it would be understandable, but NOT.

To think that LE, which Lord knows, I have my suspicions,(considering the shoddy way this case has been handled) set him up, is awfully depressing...I think that Judy & others have the same theories about the 'bigwigs' being involved in things like the child porn rings, snuf film stuff, etc.....Then w/ reading these posts, I know of Chandra L, but these other interns, in DC????..lots of power, influence & people on the take there!

I believe; want to believe, that there are some honest people w/integrity out there...but I think the corruption is so deep, that it's going to take the hand of the Almighty to purge the places of power. I just hope that the jury can see through all of the smoke n mirrors and let DW go!

[Jaded]

LE gave him Feldman's name and number.

[rolling_stone]

morning & afternoon of june 26....

[Politicalmom]

That was a completely rude comment. YOU never add anything to the discussion, except confusion.

Capps has added tons of valuable information due to experience with bodies in Bosnia. (Is that the right place, Capps?)

[fatima]

You are the best sweetheart that FR has ,Go to bed.

[CAPPSMADNESS]

(Is that the right place, Capps?)

No, that would be Freeper Wonder, I believe...

I worked with the Medical Examiner/Coroner in my home county and also in the funreal business. I now work in a trauma unit.

[Jaded]

It's been said and speculated often in the thread SINCE FEBRUARY. I gave you places to look it up.

[John Jamieson]

Det Ott has a history of falsifying evidence and reports. I met a similar dishonest cop a few years ago. They hear just what they wanted to hear and could twist your words anyway they liked. (Cost me $10k to correct it).

In this case, Ott has already been caught lying on search warrant requests. He really believed DW did it and was going to make sure DW got punished. He didn't know that the body was in the wrong place and had been dumped at the wrong time. Sometimes people are just wrong when they think they are doing "the right thing".

[Politicalmom]

Sorry. Didn't mean to get you mixed up.

You still have added a lot of valuable stuff, and you know how to spell and punctuate correctly. : )

[CAPPSMADNESS]

"Sorry. Didn't mean to get you mixed up."

LOL! the good Lord knows that I am more than capable of doing that all by my lonesome!

"You still have added a lot of valuable stuff"

As have you!

I appreciate you and Jaded coming to my defense, but it really isn't necessary. I avoided giving fatima the reaction she was seeking and in return, got to stay on FR another day to post away! I believe her comment speaks for itself and no matter how much I may have wanted to respond in kind, I didn't. Besides, wouldn't the AM have removed the comment had it indeed been insulting?

[domestice]

Bingo, I thought maybe I wasn't reading something right..maybe I actually was this time.

Last night I misunderstood KnutCases comment & asked him if he was being hostile!! I tend to sometimes just blurt things out...one of my many weak points..LOL...I'm sorry about that KnutCAse, please forgive me!! I thought that I'd better not make any stupid comments if I wasn't sure...

At any rate, I thought that post rather bizarre.....:-0

[Politicalmom]

Ummmm..sure the AM would have removed it....you optimist, you.

[CAPPSMADNESS]

"you optimist, you"

:)

It's a dirty job, but someone's gotta do it!

[domestice]

I think you need some basic grammar, punctuation & vocabulary classes...some logic would do you some good too!

[fatima]

Why do i have to look it up,you are saying Westerfield had sex with Danielle van Dam 's mother ,which sickens me to post.Why.

[domestice]

Some may benefit from this post Bluebird sent earlier

How about "critical thinking skills"?

From B.K. Beyer (1987) Practical strategies for the teaching of thinking:

View of a Critical Thinker

Separates relevant from irrelevant information.
Spots inconsistencies in a line reasoning.
Identifies and challenges assumptions.
Separates verifiable facts from value claims.
Identifies doubtful or unclear claims and arguments.

[Politicalmom]

Yeah, it is sickening that a mother of young children was out trolling for multiple sex partners in a bar, isn't it? And she didn't care if they were male or female either.

Yep, a disgusting, sickening tramp.......

[John Jamieson]

Because:

1. Brenda has sex with just anyone of any sex, by her own admission.

2. Orange fibers and bleached blond hairs in the backseat of DW's SUV.

3. Brenda left her friends and went out to the parking lot by herself and later pickedup the friends at the front door.

You don't seem to understand that DW didn't kill Danielle.