Jury begins deliberations -Prosecutor says victim has pointed to her killer (keep it civil)

UNION-TRIBUNE signonsandiego.com ^ | August 9, 2002 | Alex Roth

[dread78645]

Jurors in the David Westerfield trial began deliberating yesterday after hearing a final statement from the lead prosecutor, who beamed a photo of 7-year-old Danielle van Dam onto the wall and urged the jury to focus on the physical evidence.

Finishing closing arguments in the two-month murder trial, prosecutor Jeff Dusek called a blood spot on Westerfield's jacket the "smoking gun." And Dusek imagined what Danielle might tell the jury if someone could bring her back to life "just for a moment" so she could answer the question, "Please tell us who did this to you."

"I've already told you," Dusek said the girl would tell the jury. "I've told you with my hair and where you found it. I've told you with the orange fiber that you found on my choker, and where you found it.

[John Jamieson]

There are two more:

The body was dumpped while DW was under 24 hour police watch.

DW's jacket had Danielle's DNA on it, but the jacket was taken to drycleaners 1/26 and pickedup by LE on 2/6. How did that happen?

[dread78645]

Dusek "channels" Danielle,

Shirley MacLaine, Legal Consultant.

[the-gooroo]

Dosuk DOES charge DW with kidnapping and murder. Admits that he can't prove it. Doesn't have the foggiest idea why he would do it. Doesn't know how he did it.
He DOESN'T charge the man with rape or even molestation but DOES
tell them exactly how he commits a brutal rape in the motorhome. I still can't figure out how Dusek got away with that. ?????

[The Other Harry]

When my dog was about 6 months old, we had a peeping Tom in our backyard (2.5 acres). The drapes were all closed, the doors locked and all lights off in the house. We were all in bed. The dog started going nuts until we let him out. We thought he needed to relieve himself because we saw nothing. He cornered the guy in a tree on the edge of our property and wouldn't let him down. The dog would never allow a stranger to come into the house and remove a child, or even touch a child for that matter. When we would take him to my son's bb games, he wouldn't let anyone lean on our car. This was just a springer spaniel.

That dog deserves a treat.

Now do any of you have a dog who would not alert the family to a prowler?

My dog goes off like an explosion when the postman so much as walks down the opposite side of the street.

No all do, however. Still, someone entering the house in the middle of the night...

All things considered, I don't think DW ever set foot inside the vD house. I don't think it's possible that he did. That doesn't mean he's necessarily innocent, but it goes a long way that direction.

[The Other Harry]

I believe that, don't you?

Right!

[dread78645]

Then he carried her down the stairs, out the back door and down the street and no one saw a thing. THE END

Uhh --You mean he doesn't have ruby slippers and a bottle of Febreze ?

[John Jamieson]

Maybe he didn't, with those that count.

[The Other Harry]

The motive was the porn, which is a misdemeanor. Nothing else has been proven. If you find porn so offensive you would convict a person of murder with circumstantial evidence and reasonable doubt, IMO you are hanging a man on a misdemeanor charge. The porn itself is not a DP charge, but the weight a juror puts on the porn could send someone to their death.

I think the "porn" was blatantly prejudicial and should have either been excluded or tried separately.

I once talked with a very respectable lady about the fact that she had used her computer to look at pornography. I don't know any of the details of what she did, but I don't think it was much. She was afraid that she had done something illegal that had left tracks on her computer, and she wanted my advice.

I had no advice to give her. What I told her was that I think probably almost all PC's will show some evidence of that, whether intentional or otherwise.

If DW had had thousands and thousands of true kiddie-porn images on his computer, then maybe that would show something. But I'm not even sure that would. Not unless an image of Danielle was in there.

[the-gooroo]

From your lips (fingertips) to God's ears. -- I'm hoping for the best but preparing for the worst. I will never believe that one or all of the pizza party gang aren't in some way responsible for this poor little one's murder.

[small_l_libertarian]

I'm so nervous today. Yesterday, I was feeling somewhat cautiously confident, because the jury wanted to meet on Fridays - I thought that maybe they thought they could get it done in a day.

Now I'm afraid that the best I can hope for is a hung jury. That's still no good, even though I don't think Dusek wants to try this case again.

So what happens to DW in that case? If there's a hung jury, does he go home or back to jail?

[Krodg]

Lets try a new tract. Let's see what the DA proved. You go first, cause I can't find anything.

[Jaded]

I keep tellin' ya it's the lycra/spandex catsuit on the 210LB man with the ruby slippers and night vision glasses. (Locking in visual).

The lunatics have taken over the asylum. Their leader's name is Jeff.

[the-gooroo]

Hi_l_. I know just what you mean. I think it's up to the judge. I'm sure Dusek would say he was going to retry the case if there's a hung jury. I seriously doubt Mudd would let him out. It's pretty obvious that he thinks DW is guilty.

[Jaded]

I have to argue that point later tonight. Can you send me a link to this. Also are there pictures of the receipts?

[gigi]

"I want to ask all the posters if any of you have ever had a dog who allow a stranger to walk into your home, go up the stairs and take a child from their bed."

There is no way anybody comes into our house without being fully greeted by our two dogs. I'm sure if some stranger got in the house in the middle of the night we would know.

Teddy and Ruckus would "Alert" in no uncertain terms!!!

[Jaded]

Ping for jury Prayer. They need all the help they can get to do the right thing. There's only One who can do that with them.

[John Jamieson]

Danielle is dead, Dusek can read minds, and there is a massive child porno production ring with local rep and movie star Brooke L. Rowlands.

[Krodg]

The first I heard of the Jan date was in Feldman's close. It might have been there when he questioned the computer problems at the drycleaners, but I don't remember hearing a date.

[Krodg]

Amen. His will be done.

[small_l_libertarian]

I agree that Dusek would probably SAY he intends to retry DW, but he's got to know that his case just stinks to high heaven. I really don't see how he could do a better job a second time around. It would make sense that it's up to the judge - and I agree that Mudd would never let him out.

Pardon the ugly language, but this just plain sucks.