Posted on 01/08/2003 9:24:19 AM PST by 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.
I think it does say why Mudd Suppressed it.
It says it was DW's constitutional right to have this info and be able to present it in his defense. It says that the phone call might have provided more REASONABLE DOUBT as it could show that Danielle was alive for some time and supported the findings of Faulkner.
It seems anything that supported DW's non-guilt was SUPPRESSED by MUDD. I still say that DW's rights were trampled all over in many different ways, and repeatedly. His whole case should have been thrown out due to the prejudice and denial of rights issues. The jury should have been sequestered and wasn't. I really think that DW should have gotten a new trial.
The Prosecution was pulling a "CLINTON". Accusing defense of doing just what Prosecution was doing the whole time.
I do not believe he raped and murdered Danielle, however.
Even if he did, his rights were violated in so many ways, he deserves a new trial.
As I read the recently released documents, I keep finding that DW's right were violated over and over and over. Mudd apparently saw this as "Who cares, he's guilty and we all know it"
I notice that the search warrant for the MH was very specific about what they 'wanted' to find. Almost as if they 'knew' what they were going to find.
Funny too how the search warrant specified the 'hair in the sink trap', but the testimony (IIRC) from the guy that 'found' it was it was all luck. They hadn't thought to search the trap at first, then did and GEE, they found a hair.
Each step along the way, the LE and FBI kept getting search warrants for what they 'knew' they would find next. Each time they didn't find it. They 'knew' he would have binding materials, choker collars. Didn't find it. They knew he would have videotape of Danielle. Didn't find it. They knew he hid her body in some storage facility. Didn't find it.
Eventually they got down to where they "KNEW" he had to be the one that did it. (1) They hadn't had any other successful leads, and chose to ignore info DW gave them about a red pickup truck leaving the VD's vicinity early Saturday morning. (It would seem every time DW had info that might have helped , the LE chose to ignore it because they "KNEW" he was just trying to lead them away from himself. They just "KNEW". The jury just "KNEW". The judge just "KNEW". Court TV just "KNEW", The SD-UT just "KNEW". The whole case, from the time LE first talked to DW at his house up to now, has been investigated, and decided, based on the concept of "WE KNEW HE DID IT", then we viewed the evidence, etc. and by golly we were right. Any evidence, information that didn't support "WE KNEW HE DID IT" was ignored, hidden, or ruled out by the court. Why pay any attention to information contrary to WHAT YOU KNOW?
YES. Many of the things they found made DW a LIKELY SUSPECT. Many of DW's behavior's made him a LIKELY SUSPECT. He seemed to fit a PROFILE. (as well as millions of other males)
The physical evidence I find too suspicious. The circumstances involved during their discovery, and the wacky analysis and conflicting testimonies.
The FBI and SDPD insist that DW's being over cooperative shows he is guilty. He took them on a trip in the MH. He showed them around his house. He showed them a 'secret' staircase. He signed a release allowing them to look through his house.
He did many things I have never seen a 'guilty' person do.
The trial was a sham. Dusek got away with Murder, Judge Mudd rewrote the constitution and trial law, and Feldman put his whole basket of eggs into Faulker and lost.
I wish he would win an appeal, just so Mudd and Dusek and others in the justice system would see that we don't like losing our constitutional rights, or others losing them, even is they are a suspect.
I say a new trial, somewhere away from outside influence, and tremendous peer pressure for jurors. Somewhere away from the influence of the local LE and DA. Give the man a FAIR trial, then execute him if he is convicted.
I know you will never agree with me, neither will Cyncooper or Redlipstick. You all seem concerned with 'getting justice' for Danielle, which is good. DW is the one that LE has picked out and pointed you at. All the anger and emotion comes through in your posts. Anger at DW, hatred towards him, and anger at anyone that can't see DW as this ten-horned purple people eater that you all see him as.
Question: How did DW get through a locked door? Without the door showing any evidence of tampering ? This is where I find the conflicts in the belief system of the DW-did-it group. They say, well, Danielle was outside and he took her. Then they say DW raped her and killed her in her bedroom. Then they say he grabbed her from the bedroom, held her mouth closed and carried her out. They say he raped her and killed her Friday night, then went driving around all weekend with her alive in the MH.
NEVER, in this whole case, have I heard a REASONABLE EXPLANATION, with a TIMELINE, of HOW this crime occurred. All of the pieces of the puzzle that don't fit, the LE and the JURY just THREW AWAY.
DUSEK stated that DW killed Danielle in her bedroom, then during closing, went on and on about her being raped in the MH.
I would have said "which is it?", but most didn't ask that question. WHY? Because, to them it didn't matter, they KNEW HE WAS GUILTY, so why worring about conflicting info!
As with every post, I read yours with an open mind and interest. You were doing well until you made the above statement. I got your number.
If questioning evidence makes us delusional, so be it.
But I would still like to know how 1 of her hairs is found in a sink drain trap with 5 other blonde hairs that are not hers...with degraded markers, yet we are to believe it was from that weekend.
Why was the lead detective and child abuse expert not told of the blood in the VD home..yet they were cleared?
Why no pj fibers were found in his environment?
Why were none of the multi colored fibers found on her body, not found in his environment?
Why were none of her hairs found on the fabric headboard, bed or elsewhere in the MH?...they were not found in the vacuum either....yet many other hairs of other people were found.
There were 19 stains on the MH floor...yet dw supposedly knew which 2 to place towels over, yet he waits to do this until after the detectives have been thru the MH once already?
No urine or fecal evidence from a scared little girl who was supposedly raped and killed in the MH?
Why didn't the criminalists dust the cabinet over the bed in the MH, even after they found her print on the side cabinet?...the print that Jeff Graham said was still so strong and visable after several dustings.
I could go on and on with more questions..but those questions are just for those of us who don't live in the real world, I guess.
Rheo, there is a huge difference in questioning evidence if the question is based on the actual state of the record and what fact is known, and asking questions that have no factual basis, as the poster you are referring to did.
You have questions based on actual testimony and data that you would like answers to. No problem.
I am sorry you see me as a shrew. I asked that person to not post to me OR refer to me, and he has ignored that instruction and it raises my ire. I also get frustrated when someone like that makes leaps and bounds to a conclusion when their premise is flawed, yet feels they can chastise someone else for reaching a reasonable conclusion based on proven fact.
This is such an obvious lie he came up with to explain away any possible evidence that the laundering and drycleaning didn't take care of. And you can bet that Dylan disputed this and even Feldman couldn't go with this lie.
And in that same conversation he states the kids did NOT go upstairs during that visit.
You have questions based on actual testimony and data that you would like answers to. Well, as long as they agree with my opinion. If they don't, I won't answer.
Most of your conclusions are based on no more fact than mine. You read parts of the released documents and constantly repeat "proves to me", or "that means". You also read parts of the documents, then take what your imagination tells you and try to repeat it on this thread as "fact". When you get called on it, you get mad. When I do the same, and get called on it, I try to back it up. If it is my speculation, I admit so. Why can't you?
Pretty much from the start, even though we disagreed, I trusted you as a valid source of documented information. Lately though, you have started 'reading into' things whatever conclusion you want. You complain others are just making things up, but you won't discuss those things or prove them wrong. You just want to insist they are creepy liars.
You and Redlipstick sometimes remind me of a couple of high-school girls in a clique who are trying to have everyone hate some poor girl that is not in their clique to make themselves feel better. I think it is possible that in the early stages of the case, you and others felt like you were the ones being treated that way. Sometimes you were. That was wrong. If you didn't like it then, why do you do it to others now?
On a different note. What would you do if someone came forward, or a particular law agency came forward with info and proof that someone else did it?
I think you don't want to talk to me because I asked you to back something up with proof, and if wrong, stay off the threads. You couldn't/didn't do it. Instead you refused to reply to my posts. Are you afraid?
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.