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Prosecutor: Westerfield Guilty 'Beyond Possible Doubt'(Many Still Find Van Dam's Culpable)
Court TV ^ | August 7, 2002 | Harriet Ryan

Posted on 08/06/2002 8:53:49 PM PDT by FresnoDA

Prosecutor: Westerfield guilty 'beyond possible doubt'

Photo
Lead prosecutor Jeff Dusek traced the fingerprint, blood and fiber evidence linking defendant David Westerfield to a murdered girl.

SAN DIEGO — Calling the murder of Danielle van Dam an "evil, evil crime" that shattered notions of suburban safety, a prosecutor urged jurors Tuesday to convict her neighbor, David Westerfield, of capital charges.

Before a courtroom filled to capacity for closing arguments, prosecutor Jeff Dusek said the 50-year-old engineer snuck into the second-grader's bedroom last February, snatched her from her canopy bed, killed her and then "dumped this 7-year-old child naked in the dirt like trash for animals to devour."

"He's guilty of these crimes. He's guilty of the ultimate evil. He's guilty to the core," Dusek told jurors at the end of a closing studded with drama despite its three-and-a-half-hour length.

Dusek shouted and jabbed his finger at the defense table when he discussed Westerfield and the child pornography the prosecution says reveals a motive in the killing. But when he mentioned Danielle's death, his voice dropped to a whisper, forcing jurors to lean forward when he said, for example, of the moments before her killing, "This was not an easy time. This was not fast."

 

Westerfield listened to the prosecutor's closing argument Tuesday.

At one point, he slammed his hand again and again on the jury box rail to simulate, he said, Danielle's head striking Westerfield's headboard as he raped her. The image was too much for Brenda van Dam, Danielle's mother. She leapt up from her seat at the back of the courtroom and ran to the door in tears.

Westerfield's lawyer, Steven Feldman, began his closing late Tuesday afternoon. He is to conclude Wednesday morning and then Dusek will have one final opportunity to convince the panel to convict Westerfield of felony murder, kidnapping and child pornography charges.

The six women and six men who have heard evidence in the two-month long trial appeared to pay close attention to Dusek's summation, which focused on the forensic evidence connecting Westerfield to Danielle's disappearance and problems with his alibi for the weekend she vanished.

A spot of her blood on a jacket Westerfield took to the dry cleaners, Dusek said, "in itself tells you he's guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. That alone. But it doesn't stop there."

He also listed fiber, fingerprint and hair evidence linking Westerfield to Danielle and said, "all of it comes back to his lap." Of two blond strands found in the defendant's recreational vehicle and genetically matched to Danielle, he said, "Proof beyond a reasonable doubt? Proof beyond a possible doubt."

Dusek pointed to an autopsy photo showing Danielle's badly decomposed remains and ticked off the fiber and hair evidence technicians gleaned from her body.

"From Danielle herself, she helps to solve this case," he said.

Westerfield gazed straight ahead, and in the back row of the courtroom, Brenda and Damon van Dam held hands and stared at the floor. A row in front of them and three seats to their right, Westerfield's sister, who was attending the trial for the first time and was in the company of her husband and son, stared at the image.

Dusek also attacked Westerfield's claim that he spent the weekend Danielle vanished on a 560-mile solo road trip in his recreational vehicle.

"He gives us a bogus story that just doesn't wash," said Dusek, referring to his account of driving from his home to the beach then to the desert then to another part of the desert before returning to the beach.

He said Westerfield spent that weekend sexually assaulting Danielle and then after killing her, searching for a place to dump her body.

The prosecutor listed other potential suspects, including the van Dams, their friends, Westerfield's teenage son and even "the bogeyman," but said each was investigated and cleared.

He criticized what he said were defense attempts to implicate Westerfield's son, Neal, in the crime and said testimony about the van Dam's risque sex life, which included swinging, was irrelevant.

"All the sex, the alcohol, who's doing this, who's doing that. That's got nothing to do with her kidnapping," Dusek said.

With Westerfield's mug shot projected on the courtroom wall next to a passport photo of Danielle taken the day she vanished, Dusek said, "I think at times we've lost track of the other person. We've lost track of Danielle, what happened to her, what he did to her."

The prosecutor downplayed bug evidence presented by the defense suggesting Westerfield was under surveillance when Danielle's body was dumped and therefore couldn't have been responsible.

"Everyone's different, has a different estimation, approximation, some might even say guess," said Dusek. He added, "This is not an exact science. This is not DNA."

The prosecutor told jurors repeatedly that he did not have to prove to them why Westerfield killed Danielle, only that he did, but he said he was certain jurors wanted to know, "Why would a regular, normal 50-year-old guy kidnap and kill a 7-year-old child?"

There was no answer, he said, just another question. Pointing to print outs of some 85 images of child pornography found on computers and discs in Westerfield's home, Dusek said, "Why would a normal 50-year-old guy have pictures of young naked girls?"

With some of the images of elementary-school aged girls, naked and exposing their genitals, flashing on the courtroom wall behind him, Dusek pointed at Westerfield and said, "These are his fantasies."

Westerfield stared toward the empty witness stand, never looking at the photos.

Dusek acknowledged that "if (Westerfield) is the guy, that destroys all our senses of protection."

"That's the scariest part — he was a normal guy down the street," said Dusek.

Defense lawyer Feldman promised jurors the heart of his argument Wednesday, but in a little more than an hour before the panel, he seemed to be hoping for a hung jury. He presented jurors with a list of "Jury Responsibilities," several of which seemed aimed at encouraging any panelist for acquittal not to cave to pressure from other jurors.

One "responsibility" read "All of you have the right to have your feelings respected."

Just before court broke for the day, Feldman held up a blank piece of posterboard and said, "This is the only evidence they have of David Westerfield in the van Dam residence."

He suggested the van Dam's swinging lifestyle endangered their children.

"You don't know what pervert is coming in the door when you're in the bar, drunk, making invites," he said.

 
Comprehensive case coverage


TOPICS: Society
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To: spectre
Feldman's appeal to the individual jurors is not uncommon. It would not surprise me that if all the jurors are tinking to themselves right now that they might have to be that one holdout when the real possibility exists that all 12 jurors are ready to say 'not guilty' right now. Don't read too much into what Feldy has stated in this regard.
781 posted on 08/07/2002 4:45:21 PM PDT by connectthedots
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To: UCANSEE2; FresnoDA; Mrs.Liberty; demsux; MizSterious; Jaded; skipjackcity; RnMomof7; spectre; ...
COME ONE, COME ALL. LAST CHANCE TO HEAR THE GREAT ORATOR DUSEK on his FINAL CLOSING ARGUMENT!!!!!! (AKA. flies buzzing around your head)

OFFICIAL DW TRIAL THREAD GLOSSARY

150-QUADTRILLION-TO-ONE= Proof that Danielle was an Alien whose DNA could not match any individual of the human population on 25 million earth-like planets

AGAINST ALL ODDS=the view of the informed open-minded segment of the populace vs. the view of the media-fed popular over-emotional majority (i.e. sheeple).

ALSO, the fight of the DW-GUILTY posters vs. the DW-NOT GUILTY posters on FR.

BARBED= Having reached the point of being too hot to handle for either the prosecution OR the defense.

BEETLEMANIA= resulting frenzy of hard-shelled insects when their party is moved to another location and postponed for another two weeks.

BUGOLOGIST=hound: a person who is an amateur entomologist who is convinced that the bugs have stated that DW is innocent regardless of blood, fibers, hair and child porn.

BUGOUT= When the first entomology forensics expert hired and normally used by the Prosecution is used to support the defense. As a result, the Prosecution goes out and hires another bug guy from far away that will testify the way he is told.

CHAMELEON-FIBER= a "dull orange" fiber that perfectly matches a "bright orange" fiber when viewed through the world's finest laboratory instruments.

COKEYS=What happens to your keyboard when you read a humorous reply on FR and SPEW your favorite sugar-laced beverage on your keyboard. First, your fingers stick to the keys, then later, you end up with multiple replies and repeating characters due to the keys sticking. Later you end up buying a new keyboard.

DESPERADO SNACK= (AKA Party-Mix) What you do for food after being addicted to the net and FR for so long that you eat and sleep at the PC. Finally you get so addicted you won’t even get up to go get FOOD, so, you turn the keyboard upside down and shake it out over a piece of paper. You then funnel the crumbs into your mouth.

DEJACKALED=Removal of definitions that were attacks by certain posters at other posters. Removal of non-productive REPLIES on a thread by refusal to make such a reply yourself, or respond to one made to you.

.DUSEKCATED= the chewed-up condition of a prosecutor who has no case to begin with, after his 'bugsperts' helped the defendant's case more than his.

DUSEKED= to have your fragile house of prosecutorial cards collapse when your witness is FELDMANIZED.

DUSEK’S MADNESS= the affliction someone has who knowingly attempts to send an innocent man to the death chamber in spite of glaring exculpatory evidence.

FAULKERNIZED= a natural process whereby maggots destroy a month's worth of court testimony in two hours.

FELDMAN FOR DUMMIES=The art of understanding how defense doesn't deny anything, doesn't deny the blood, hair, fiber and child porn..but spends his time deflecting it towards someone else.

FELDMANIZED - Judicially castrated; having reduced a reasonably intelligent witness to a blithering blob with the coherence of Rain Man and the believability of x42; usually accompanied by rhythmic thumping of DA's head on table. See DUSEKED.

FIRECRACKERS = Posters on a thread that appear as: A bunch of noise and sparks, a little fire, but mostly smoke, and then after a while, they are gone.

FISHES AND LOAVES PIZZA= A seeming unending supply of pizza. Can be bought at NOON on a Friday, and it will feed a family of 5, then will feed the same family of 5 + 2 more guests until 8:30pm, then will feed Mom,Dad, and four guests around 2am Saturday Morning.

GRACEFULL= full of self-importance (as in Nancy Grace), to the great annoyance of others

HELLOCINATING= the Swing Set's delusional belief that everyone they met wanted to come home with them.

HIGH LYING VAN DAMS=Description of the parents of Danielle Van Dam who were repeatedly getting HIGH while their daughter disappeared and met her death. Who now have exhibited a pattern of repeated lying about their activities to police, in the PRELIMs and in the TRIAL. In the meanwhile their daughter may have suffered unbelievable horrors until she met her death, yet they continued to lie. Even know, when finding or convicting the killer is of prime importance, they continue to hide the truth and protect their friends. Also they have gone on, after their daughter’s death. New BMW, trip to the state fair, and appearances in COURT where they display an unusual talent for ACTING. HOSED=being subjected to 24 hour surveillance due to unrolled hose in yard.

HTML CODE SHRIEKING - repeated use of large, colorful fonts in posts. To the annoyance of some, the amusement of others, and the bafflement of newbies.

INSECTOPHILE - To be conversant in life cycles and mating of obscure insects, sprinkled with multi-syllabic terms from college level biology and meteorology. Caused by prolonged exposure to a BUG GUY.

THE IMMACULATE ABDUCTION= The kidnapping of Danielle Van Dam by an unknown (Alias SUPER NINJA DAVE), who broke into a locked house, which had alarms, and a dog, and a father and three children inside. He kidnapped the young female, while drunk, carried her out of the house, flew her to his motorhome (see caped outfit), and murdered her. While in the house, he left no prints, no DNA, no hairs, no fibers, not one piece of evidence he was ever there, and neither the dog, the father, nor the two other children ever noticed anyone had been in their house and walked past their open bedroom doors.

LORD OF THE FLIES= A ‘rogue’ bug expert that can be hired to come up with an EXACT time of death matching what you need to win the case, when all other experts you hired didn’t give you the answer you wanted. This LOTF’s lives in a far off land with no resemblance to nor familiarity with the conditions where the death occurred. All you have to do is send him a lock of hair, some newt toes, the evaluations and information from the other experts and a big bag of CHEETOS. The info must be sent in an envelope and you must mark on the back, in PIG LATIN, the Time of Death you wish him to devine. HE will utter such phrases as “the activity of bugs on the corpse is the same as animal activity on the sides of a recent volcano, and the hairs are like the trees of the forest and , well, the whole planet, the sun, the moon, are like the molecules on the skin cell of a person from the next dimension, and they are just a molecule of a hair on the….., uh,hhhh, what was I, oh yeah , TIME OF DEATH IS ……….”

This expert ‘s fee is very high, due to the fact that he lives so far away, and, well, DO YOU KNOW HOW MUCH a DECENT BAG of MAUI WOWEEE cost these days ! MAGNETOMANIAC= A suspect who devises theories of how the "immaculate abduction" took place.

MAGNUMFIBER = a 27 pound single orange fiber that covered Danielle's body. Listed in GBR as the largest single fiber ever produced

PIZZA-EATERS: Usually a group of 5 or more of guests and/or family members that is customarily needed to eat a neverending pizza. See: FISHES AND LOAVES PIZZA

PIZZA-PARTY = After coming home from the bar at 2am with friends, new friends, total strangers, you head to the garage for PIZZA. (PIZZA is AKA drugs, sex)

PREMATURE ACCUSATION=An arrest by police of a suspect before they have done investigative work on all of the evidence which might indicate which suspect is the most likely perpetrator.

REPLY-FOG=Getting so tired and confused on during conversations on the thread that you end up replying to the wrong person, or mistaking the intention or tone of their reply and reply back with an inappropriate response.

SCAPECOAT= the jacket owned by DW with Danielle's tiny spot of DNA

SIX-PACK= PIZZA-EATERS all in one bed.

SLUTJACKALS=(1)a bisexually aggressive female type species, with out scruples, restraint, or moral fiber. Willing to settle for anything that satisfies basal desires, and in any way considered momentarily convenient.(2)Masters of deceit, sinister, cold-hearted, savage creatures which prey upon ambushing unsuspecting neighbors.

SWEET-TREAT= What you get if you just SPEWED on your keyboard and now you are thirsty and hungry. You quickly make a funnel out of paper and turning the keyboard upside down, funnel the Mixture of PARTY-MIX and COKEYS into a cup, then DRINK IT.

SWING-SET= For those who don't like playing in the sand box. Usually a set of six, who share the set and enjoy highs and lows.

SWINGER-SIX =Brenda, Barbara, Denise, Larry, Mo and Curly (AKA PIZZA-EATERS)

THE NEVER-ENDING-JOINT= A rolled cigarette of marijuana (wackyweed) that can be smoked by 4 people at 830pm , then smoked by 4 or more people several times in the parking lot of a bar, then can still be smoked by six people in a garage , at 2 in the morning. (Save the roach!)

TODIOT= a time-of-death expert whose 4 sigma range of possible death dates encloses a range of time, during all of which, the victim is known to have been living

TRANSCRIPT-FATIGUE=:The special feeling one gets when confronted with the task of combing through the transcripts in order to back up (for the 100th time)a theory or assertion regarding the trial. AKA ‘fourth instar’

VAN DAM DAMN VAN = a blue van used in Damon Van Dam's wild ride through all the probable dump sites for Danielle's body on the weekend of Feb 16th. Although Damon does not report having found the body that weekend, the flys did. Now missing in action.

WILD BUG CHASE=Going through a series of BUG EXPERTS, one after another, questioning them in endless circles, in an attempt to get them confused.

AND THE NEWEST ADDITIONS:

MASOCHISM=Watching the Trial of David Westerfield on COURT-TV and actually sitting still and listening to the commentary of Nancy Grace, et. al.

782 posted on 08/07/2002 4:45:28 PM PDT by UCANSEE2
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To: bvw
Don't you mean that Self Love is safe sex???
783 posted on 08/07/2002 4:47:21 PM PDT by KnutCase
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To: connectthedots
I was not impressed with his closing...actually I was not impressed with eithor man..but Feldman was difficult to stay with
784 posted on 08/07/2002 4:47:53 PM PDT by RnMomof7
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To: bvw
Self-love. Is is sex safe?

Thats a lie. I got carpal tunnel from keyboarding.

785 posted on 08/07/2002 4:48:14 PM PDT by VRWC_minion
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To: All
Is this very out of the ordinary for closing arguments to go on for this long?
786 posted on 08/07/2002 4:48:31 PM PDT by Green
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To: cyncooper
One time FresnoDA asked the moderator to ban him, then he came back with an alias and the only people to "get it" were we in the "DW is probably guilty" camp. Go figure.

I respectfully disagree with your conclusion. I knew that the "Mayor" was FDA. And while some DW RAILROADED posters were fooled, there were several DW GUILTY posters that were really fooled. They were the ones replying to him and asking questions.

You, now are doing what is being done in closing arguments. IMO.

787 posted on 08/07/2002 4:48:52 PM PDT by UCANSEE2
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To: bvw
Exactly..I think they should be sequestered for the verdict.

He has received NOTICE from at least two Jurors are not happy with their "freedom"...why else would they complain to him? They are pleading for help...Like a Stubborn old goat, Judge Mudd is ignoring them. Unbelieveable.

sw

788 posted on 08/07/2002 4:49:26 PM PDT by spectre
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To: spectre
here's this goat thing again..... where did that come from???
789 posted on 08/07/2002 4:50:44 PM PDT by CAPPSMADNESS
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To: VRWC_minion
The importance of an index finger!
790 posted on 08/07/2002 4:50:48 PM PDT by bvw
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To: RnMomof7
Feldman did a very good job. He began his presentation with the beginning, starting with the cookie sales & ending with the entomologists. He was very passionate & truly believes in DW's innocense.
791 posted on 08/07/2002 4:51:30 PM PDT by the Deejay
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To: spectre
he's like the Ever-Ready-Bunny..geeze

But how does he compare to the Energizer Bunny?

792 posted on 08/07/2002 4:52:38 PM PDT by I. Ben Hurt
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To: spectre
Perhaps those two jurors are thinking that they would reach a verdict more quickly if they were sequestered.
793 posted on 08/07/2002 4:52:43 PM PDT by Unknown Freeper
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To: the Deejay
That's what I gathered too, he isn't just defending him because he is paid to - He REALLY believes in his innocence
794 posted on 08/07/2002 4:53:29 PM PDT by CAPPSMADNESS
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To: RnMomof7
I thought Feldman was pretty good mostly because he address the evidence in detail and explained his side of it while Dusek seemed to jusat say they had the evidence. Feldman will get at least a hung jury if not an outright acquittal.
795 posted on 08/07/2002 4:53:58 PM PDT by connectthedots
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To: alexandria
what kind of reel do you use?

I carry two Hardy (I think they are number 7) fly reels each with a different type of fly line. :)
796 posted on 08/07/2002 4:54:51 PM PDT by pyx
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To: CAPPSMADNESS
Probably came from the mention of beastiality earlier in the day.
797 posted on 08/07/2002 4:55:10 PM PDT by KnutCase
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To: Green
Is this very out of the ordinary for closing arguments to go on for this long?

I would think this CASE will hold many records.

(1) Fastest Murder case gone to trial in the U.S. (or at least San Diego).

(2)Least amount of real evidence in a Murder/Kidnapping/Rape trial

(3)Longest rambling closing arguments by both attorneys.

(4)Most 'sustained objections' by prosecution during closing arguments.

(5)Most 'overruled' objections by defense during the whole case.

(6)Most relevant but suppressed evidence/testimony in a case.

(7)Most discussion by a Judge of baseball team during a trial.

798 posted on 08/07/2002 4:57:18 PM PDT by UCANSEE2
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To: the Deejay
I personally think that Feldman jumping back and forth and backing up again is all part of his method and is almost totally on purpose. Same goes for the dragging around of the evidence boards, rattling papers while he's talking, etc.

It forces the jury to pay closer attention to his words, as not everything in his presentation moves in a straight, predictable line from beginning to end. It forces the jurors to listen, otherwise, they lose their place in the story. Same for the rattling papers - the jury has to concentrate on his words to make out what he's saying above the literal (and figurative) background noise.

I believe that this is a purposeful device, and one that I think may work pretty well.

It's a very different style from Dusek, who could drone on for two whole days about a fiber. Dusek puts the jury to sleep, Feldman forces them to stay awake.
799 posted on 08/07/2002 4:57:33 PM PDT by small_l_libertarian
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To: All
Listening on kogo radio, the commentary is just silly. They are dwelling on Dusek having the jurors in tears
yesterday. Well, folks, the jury cannot have emotions &
cannot reach a verdict on *emotions*.

I don't know where these legal analysts come up with
these things. When they *know better*.
800 posted on 08/07/2002 4:57:38 PM PDT by the Deejay
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