Posted on 06/08/2002 3:33:44 PM PDT by MizSterious
Westerfield trial TV coverage lures viewers with lurid details
Remote Control
Robert P. Laurence
June 7, 2002
TV is about pictures, and the David Westerfield trial has not been a pretty picture.
Carried live on four local stations, and on cable's Court TV, the trial's pictures have been drawn in words, words like "sexual penetration" "putrefaction," "animal activity" and "decomposition" used in describing what might have happened to the body of 7-year-old Danielle van Dam before and after her death.
To many, the pictures, again drawn in words, of adults engaged in spouse-swapping, group sex and pot smoking have been nearly as repugnant.
But just as many are finding the whole spectacle of kidnapping, murder, kinky sexuality and everyday middle-class suburbanites pursuing a lifestyle usually associated with memories of hippies of the 1960s morbidly fascinating. (Some may be looking at the folks next door with new curiosity.)
Decisions of local TV stations have varied according to the expected newsworthiness of whatever witness has been on the stand. All carried the testimony of Damon and Brenda van Dam, Danielle's parents, Wednesday and yesterday.
KUSI/Channel 51 has been the most dedicated, carrying all the testimony live, and airing a nightly hour-long wrap-up of the day's activities at 9 p.m. For viewers who don't subscribe to cable, KUSI has been the only place to watch the entire trial.
KGTV/Channel 10 has aired most of the testimony in the first three days of the trial. The coverage airs sometimes on Channel 10, and always on KGTV's all-news cable outlet on Channel 15. KFMB/Channel 8 and KNSD/Channel 39 have been choosier, often skipping the testimony of technical experts.
Wednesday's ratings favored KGTV and KUSI, and Nielsen totals of how many people have been watching TV during the day were up as much as 12 percent compared to last week.
Some of the technical testimony has been the most gruesomely fascinating, including the descriptions of County Medical Examiner Dr. Brian Blackbourne of the condition of Danielle's body when it was found, and his listing of which body parts had been gnawed by animals and which had not. (Blessedly, the courtroom camera has eschewed close-ups of the pictures of the child's body. Those would be too ugly to bear.)
Just as fascinating in the context of the grisly scenario was Brenda van Dam's description of the now-painfully mundane routine of selling Girl Scout cookies, the route she and Danielle followed as they walked house to house through the neighborhood, and her statement that the home of defendant David Westerfield "was the last house we went to."
For those who have made up their mind that Westerfield is guilty, Court TV is the place to go. Anchors Nancy Grace and Sheila Stainback have all but declared themselves witnesses for the prosecution. Both have ridiculed potential defense arguments before they've been made in court, and Grace described Westerfield at one point as "looking pretty pasty right now."
Grace yesterday waxed long and righteously indignant because Damon van Dam wasn't allowed to stay in the courtroom while his wife testified, bemoaning that he wasn't being allowed "closure," but ignoring the fact that California courts don't allow witnesses to remain in court while other witnesses testify.
Local anchors have remained neutral and objective, but speculation has not been entirely absent. Lawyer Milt Silverman, analyst for KGTV, yesterday said he was wondering whether Westerfield had "figured out ways to defeat those locks" on the Van Dams' home.
Still, the most memorable pictures we've seen so far in the Westerfield trial were those of yesterday morning.
The first was the stricken look on Brenda van Dam's face when she was asked how many children she has, and her long pause as she deliberately decided to include Danielle: "Three."
The second was of Brenda van Dam, sobbing and daubing a tissue to her eyes as she listened to a tape of her first 911 call, and heard her own voice tell the operator, "My daughter's not in her bed this morning. She's only 7...
"Oh my God! ... I don't know where she could be."
To many, the pictures, again drawn in words, of adults engaged in spouse-swapping, group sex and pot smoking have been nearly as repugnant.
If these two paragraphs, side by side, don't show in the clearest more graphic terms the cause and effect of what drug use and other disgusting (wife swapping) things can result in, I don't know what does.
He is going to be called as a witness for the DEFENSE..and according to Feldman's opening statements will absolutely show, without any doubt, that Westerfield could not have deposited Danielle's body where it was found.
Keep in mind, that DW was under 7/24 hour watch from the day he came back from his camping trip, till he was arrested. Here's where the LE can't spin their way out of it...as witnesses will be called to say they didn't let DW out of their sight. Records will be used. Welcome to the No Spin Zone...
I think his testimony will be the turning point of the trial. At the least, we are going to get an education.
sw
SABRE SPRINGS ---- An optimistic Damon van Dam spent more than eight hours Saturday meticulously searching barren desert dunes and posting fliers at small businesses throughout east San Diego and Imperial counties in the hope of finding his missing 7-year-old daughter.
A search team from the San Diego County Sheriff's Department will look for Danielle van Dam in an area of Poway today.
On Saturday, shortly after dawn and well into the twilight hours, Damon van Dam and a high school friend drove a blue van across large sections of sun-dappled desert in areas such as Glamis, Ocotillo, Borrego Springs and Brawley. They handed out scores of fliers seeking help in finding Danielle, a Creekside Elementary second-grader who police say was last seen by her father Feb. 1 when he tucked her into bed at the family's home on Mountain Pass Road.
Police have said they believe the girl was abducted and that detectives have focused their investigation on a neighbor who lives two houses away. No arrests have been made, nor have any signs of Danielle surfaced.
Meanwhile, nearly 170 volunteers from the Danielle Recovery Center spent the day scouring the same desert locations for clues into Danielle's disappearance, coordinators said. The search efforts were being orchestrated from several locations, including the Glamis Beach Store, the Ocotillo Volunteer Fire Department and Christmas Circle in Borrego Springs.
"Although we are searching out here in the desert areas, I don't want people to stop searching San Diego," said Damon van Dam, who also spent part of Saturday recruiting more people to help search for his daughter.
Members of the San Diego County Sheriff's Search and Rescue Team will search a northern area of Poway close to the van Dams' Sabre Springs home today, police officials said Friday.
The region, bordered by Espola and Poway roads, has not been searched, and police said last week that they have information that a search in that vicinity will be useful. They have not said why they waited until today to search that area and San Diego police Capt. Ron Newman declined to comment further on the planned search.
Damon van Dam was advised by police not to search the desert himself because crucial evidence discovered may be tainted as a result of his involvement with the case, his wife Brenda, 39, said Friday.
But Damon van Dam said Saturday he was traversing the desert with information about Danielle because it was an opportune time to reach throngs of people who are in the desert for the three-day Presidents Day weekend.
A neighbor of the van Dams, David Westerfield, 49, told reporters and police that he was in the desert the weekend Danielle disappeared. The neighbor has been questioned repeatedly by police, and investigators have impounded his motor home and taken several items from his house for analysis, police have said.
The number of volunteer searchers Saturday had dwindled substantially since last weekend, when the Danielle Recovery Center was established at the Double Tree Golf Resort in Carmel Mountain Ranch, coordinators said.
About 170 people are searching this weekend, a little more than half of the center's goal of 300 searchers. Last weekend, more than 400 searchers participated in the hunt.
"We are at the mercy of whoever walks through our doors," said Fiona Oberrick, a deputy director of the center. "We are so grateful for all of the selfless generosity of the hundreds of volunteers and donations from local businesses."
Oberrick said people returning to work last Monday and those with travel plans this weekend contributed to the decline in the number of searchers.
Marc Klaas, founder of the Polly Klaas Foundation, said the public may lose interest in the case if media coverage gradually declines.
Klaas said he believes people will be sympathetic to Danielle's disappearance and want to help if they see the little girl's face in the media frequently. "We need to create an effort to encourage people to come back on a regular basis (to volunteer)", said Klaas whose 12-year-old daughter, Polly Hannah Klaas, was kidnapped from her Petaluma home in 1993 and later found murdered.
So, Layla could be more than just a carpet wetter? Do we have the time Layla tore her bed apart the night of Feb.1? That might indicate the time Danielle was being attacked. Would that information be in PDvD's PH testimony?
For anyone one here that hasn't read the testimony of Dorrie Savage and her gathering of evidence in the vD house, prints, stains,etc, you might find her testimony interesting.
The questions about the stains and beanbag, I found confusing. Where exactly was the stain in relation to the beanbag?
The bright red spots (3)found in stairway/stairwell apparently on the first landing as you walk up the stairs. Does this landing connect to a wall and were these red spots on the wall in that area? Would bright red spots indicate dried blood? Wouldn't dried blood be darker, not bright red?
Also noted, stain out side house was in garage side door area,stain approx.3 in.in length.
Feldmans cross of Ms. Savage begins between Pg.391 and 392, March 12,PM. Ph transcripts( will ck.to be sure I have the right day)
By Kristen Green
UNION-TRIBUNE STAFF WRITER
June 9, 2002
New physical evidence about Danielle van Dam's disappearance and salacious details about her parents' sex life came out during the first week of David Westerfield's capital murder trial.
Legal experts say it's too early to determine the significance those facts will have on the outcome of the case.
The trial moved along fairly quickly, as both Brenda and Damon van Dam took the stand to testify about the events leading up to their 7-year-old daughter's disappearance. Attorneys have said the trial could last as long as 11 more weeks.
"I think there's an enormous amount to learn in this case, and we're not going to know it all until the end," said San Diego criminal defense attorney Knut Johnson, who is not involved in the trial.
The San Diego Superior Court testimony hinted at, but didn't fully explain, the prosecution's theory of how Westerfield, 50, might have entered the van Dam home and kidnapped Danielle.
Westerfield's lead attorney, meanwhile, told the jury that scientific evidence would prove his client's innocence.
In his opening statements, Steven Feldman suggested Danielle could have been kidnapped by any number of people her parents invited into their home to engage in "risque behavior." His strategy, experts say, is to raise questions in jurors' minds about whether someone other than Westerfield could have kidnapped the girl.
But Deputy District Attorney Jeff Dusek told the jury he has physical evidence that connects Westerfield to Danielle's death. He said the second-grader's blood, hair and fingerprints were found in Westerfield's motor home, which he occasionally parked in front of his Sabre Springs residence. When Danielle was taken from her bed, Westerfield lived two houses from the van Dams.
Dusek told the jury that Danielle's hair was also found in the trash in Westerfield's garage and that fibers similar to those in her bedroom were discovered in the motor home. The prosecutor said fibers found inside the bag in which authorities placed Danielle's body before the autopsy matched fibers in Westerfield's laundry room. Dusek didn't elaborate on what kind of fibers were found.
Danielle's nude body was discovered Feb. 27 under a tree on Dehesa Road, 25 days after her mother went to wake her for breakfast and realized she wasn't in her bed. Westerfield was arrested Feb. 22.
Throughout the first week of the trial, the attorneys showcased two completely different styles, which experts say were indicative of their personalities. Feldman is an animated performer, gesturing wildly during his opening statement and questioning of witnesses. Dusek, meanwhile, projects an image of somber dignity with his deep voice, subdued delivery and chiseled looks.
But it's hard to say whether the men's styles will have much impact on the jury deliberations.
"They're both very competent, very able in the courtroom, and they both know their case," said San Diego criminal defense lawyer Michael Pancer. "One might be more interesting to listen to than the other, but in the end, I don't think that's what matters."
Legal experts said the prosecution put Damon and Brenda van Dam on the witness stand early on to establish the sequence of events the night before Danielle disappeared.
"That's the most compelling emotional testimony in the case," Johnson said.
Damon van Dam testified that he stayed home Feb. 1 to baby-sit the couple's three children while Brenda went out to a Poway bar with two friends.
She testified that David Westerfield was at the bar when she and her friends got there, and that he bought them drinks. She said she doesn't know what time he left the bar.
Damon van Dam testified that he put the kids to bed at 10 p.m. and fell asleep before 11 p.m. He awoke at 1:45 a.m. because his dog, Layla, a Weimaraner, was whimpering. The dog doesn't bark because she grew up on a farm where the dogs had been rendered mute.
He said he let Layla into the back yard to relieve herself and then brought the dog back inside a few minutes later.
When Brenda van Dam returned about 2 a.m. with two girlfriends and two male friends who were also partying at the bar, she noticed a red light flashing on the home security system.
She searched for an open door or window and found a side garage door open. The door had been opened earlier in the evening when she and her friends were smoking marijuana in the garage.
When the couple's friends left about 2:30 p.m., after snacking on cookies and reheated pizza, Damon and Brenda van Dam went to bed.
About 3:15 or 3:30 a.m., Damon van Dam awoke and noticed a red light flashing on the security system. He went downstairs and found a sliding glass door leading to the back yard open 6 to 10 inches. He closed it and went to bed.
Experts said those details will be vital for the jury to understand how and when someone might have slipped in and out of the house.
After testifying about the sequence of events leading up to Danielle's kidnapping, the couple also answered Feldman's questions about their sex lives. Television viewers across the nation learned about Damon and Brenda van Dam's extramarital activities, as Court TV broadcast the trial live.
Brenda van Dam admitted to having sex with her two girlfriends and their partners, and Damon van Dam admitted he had sex with both of Brenda's girlfriends. He also said he didn't tell police that he smoked marijuana the night before Danielle disappeared because he didn't want to get into trouble.
Damon van Dam completed his testimony Wednesday; his wife completed hers Thursday.
It will be the jury's responsibility to decide whether any of the details of their personal life are relevant to the issue of who killed Danielle.
The couple's appearance on the witness stand drew dozens of curious San Diegans to the courthouse to vie for a seat in a courtroom filled with spectators each day.
The van Dams' testimony also was broadcast live by most local television stations, which pre-empted normal programming.
This week could be less interesting for onlookers, as experts believe the prosecution will begin presenting scientific evidence about DNA.
A gag order in the case prevents the attorneys from commenting on the case or releasing a list of the 75 witnesses they plan to call.
WHOEVER disposed of the body definitely WANTED IT TO BE FOUND.
If DW did it, why didn't he bury the body somewhere out in the desert where it wouldn't be found or, at least, wouldn't be found for a very long time.
Nope, someone wanted this body found
I agree, someone wanted her body found. But the question is who?
133 posted on 6/9/02 1:24 PM Central by It's me
Hmmm...
Actually I think the better question is WHY? Would DW want it found? Nope not if he is guilty...
DVD/BVD for the insurance proceeds and CLOSURE(?)
A serial killer
First..That is the first I have heard of "similar " fibers on the body to those in DW laundry
Does this mean fibers unique to his property or fibers they are saying he brought into the laundry room from the murder?.
And I do note in large letters the word similar.
It seems to me that IF they were definate on origin they would have leaked that.I think I go with the idea of similar due to the contractor used in construction..
Um, Eric? :)
I agree that the situation that the little girl's body was found in seems to be entirely inconsistent with a 'crime of passion' killer whose head has cleared and now is focussed strongly on concealing his crime in a natural effort to remain free.
It's not that difficult to make at least an effort to bury a body in an area with so many remote places.
This case is so wormy though... Even if I knew much more about the players involved, I'd be reluctant to pick one.
I'm not suggesting that everyone who would smoke a little rope, oil up and jump on a writhing, squirming pile of naked folks is a child-killer, mind you...
But I'll bet that there's a much higher percentage of child-killers in this particular sub-group of humanity than there would be among, oh- say, radio control model airplane hobbyists or stamp collectors.
Those people who absolutely refuse to refrain from doing that kind of jazz need to -at a bare minimum- not have their kids in the house when they do it. If you’ve got 'swap-fever', at least make arrangements for a decent relative to baby-sit the kids. This little girl might well be alive today if these swinger-dinger-ding-dongs had followed at least that simple rule.
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