In taped interrogation, Westerfield tells police 'my life is over'

San Diego Union Tribune ^ | January 7, 2003

[TomB]

In a videotaped interrogation with San Diego police detectives four days after Danielle van Dam was kidnapped, an exhausted David Westerfield says "my life is over," seemingly coming close to an admission that he murdered his 7-year-old neighbor.

"As far as I'm concerned my life is over, the life that I had, the life that I was living is over," Westerfield says in the interrogation conducted the evening of Feb. 5, 2002. Danielle was last seen the night of Feb. 1.

"But you can't blame anyone but yourself, Dave," answers one of the police detectives.

"And I have no problem with that," Westerfield replies.

In the tapes released Tuesday, Westerfield admits "unusual" sexual encounters with his wife, denies anything improper about his alleged use of binoculars to watch neighbors and says the child pornography found on his computer was simply something he downloaded along with a lot of other pornographic images and that he had no sexual interest in children.

Superior Court Judge William Mudd agreed Monday to unseal the videotape along with hundreds of pages of transcripts, documents and recordings in the Westerfield case, as well as transcripts of police interrogations and court hearings conducted in secret.

Some of the material – audiotape and videotape of Westerfield being interrogated during the early stages of the investigation – was released Tuesday afternoon.

The remainder of the material, which ranges from transcripts of closed-door court hearings to motions regarding potential evidence, will be released Monday, Mudd ruled.

The ruling Monday came three days after Mudd sentenced the former design engineer to death for kidnapping and murdering 7-year-old Danielle van Dam, his neighbor in Sabre Springs.

Monday's court hearing came in response to a request by The San Diego Union-Tribune, which has been seeking access to the information for months. The San Diego-based 4th District Court of Appeal has ruled that Mudd must release the information.

The San Diego chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists made a donation to the legal costs.

Westerfield, who attended Monday's hearing, is scheduled to be moved within days to death row at San Quentin State Prison outside San Francisco.

During earlier court appearances, Westerfield was always dressed in civilian attire, but he appeared in court Monday in a green jail jumpsuit. He sat in a holding area so he couldn't be filmed by a television camera.

[Jaded]

There was evidence (DNA, prints, etc) that had not been tested that could identify the real killer. Prosecutor and police couldn't allow that so they had ordered the evidence destroyed. The forensics investigator in the case fought this, and finally got an injunction from a judge that was an old friend.

Never say it is so.

[demsux]

I haven't been following the Peterson threads much, however it does beg one question:

IF sp takes a poly and passes it, should the police eliminate him as a suspect, as they did the party people?

[Jaded]

If SP were to pass? Probably not, many are convinced that he is a pathological liar and would fool the test. Even with a heater on in the room.

[Rheo]

LOL!

[EllaMinnow]

Why don't you put your immense knowledge of the law and criminal justice to work, and find ONE person who passed a polygraph and was later indicted for murder?

[demsux]

What a red herring...It is now your "job" to do research for other posters.

Out tonight, see ya

[EllaMinnow]

I bet your eyes are brown...

[demsux]

I'll bet you have a very large butt...see ya

[Jaded]

Well, since polys are NOT admissible, that might be difficult to find out. You are aware of that aren't you? I'll ask though.

cheers

[EllaMinnow]

No I don't, but it's par for the course that you're WRONG.

[EllaMinnow]

Not admissable in court, but the info is easy to find.

I personally don't care, but it would be a much more productive way to spend your time than your endless whining about Sweaty Dave.

[Jaded]

Don't you have something else to do? Going away would be a good start. You can always harass people on the Peterson threads. Oh, yeah, you claim to be on the fence.

You really need to get over yourself and your snippy little attitude. Do something about that personality disorder.

Thanks, bye, have a nice day.

[BARLF]

Hi Jaded. just marking!

[Jaded]

IGNORE

[Jrabbit]

Gross ignorance is 144 times worse than ordinary ignorance. You should seek help.

[EllaMinnow]

You don't own FR, you don't own this thread.
Get used to it.

(and who's harassing people on the Peterson thread...?)

[I. Ben Hurt]

Didn't these people WIN? Isn't Westerfield in prison? What is their problem?

[Rheo]

What is their problem?

That is a good question.

[Jaded]

In theory yes. It's not enough. It will never be enough for some until they can slide the needle into his arm. Then join in the party outside the death chamber and dance around the bonfire with their heroes. They will probably try to use him for a pincushion first.