BREAKING: BRENDA VAN DAM DANCED WITH WESTERFIELD: (Modern Day Westside Story?)7-9-02 Trial Watch

KFMB ^ | July 9, 2002 | KFMB

[FresnoDA]

WITNESSES SAY BRENDA VAN DAM DANCED WITH DAVID WESTERFIELD

(07-08-2002) - Three defense witnesses testified Monday that Brenda van Dam and David Westerfield, the man accused of murdering 7-year-old Danielle van Dam, danced together the night before the girl was discovered missing.

"Mr. Westerfield and Mrs. van Dam were dancing," said Patricia LePage, describing the scene at Dad's Cafe and Steakhouse the night of Feb. 1.

Since the prosecution introduced hair and fibers found at the defendant's house and motorhome, the defense has tried to show the evidence could have been transferred in some other way, such as dancing.

The 50-year-old defendant would face the death penalty if convicted of kidnapping and killing Danielle van Dam, who lived two houses away in Sabre Springs. He is also charged with misdemeanor possession of child pornography.

In testimony near the beginning of the trial, Brenda van Dam told the court she did not dance with Westerfield.

But LePage said van Dam rubbed her hips and chest against Westerfield during several dances together, recalling the movie "Dirty Dancing." That was just part of what LePage described as "frisky" behavior exhibited by van Dam that night.

LePage said she was in a smoking lounge at Dad's with her daughter, Cherokee Youngs, when van Dam came in and struck up a conversation with the younger woman.

"Well, she did ask my daughter if she liked girls," LePage said when asked to describe the conversation. Van Dam, she said, asked Youngs if she wanted to come to her house for a party later that night.

Youngs testified about the encounter last week.

Duane Blake, a fisherman who said he goes to Dad's a couple times a week, said he caught a glimpse of the defendant dancing with van Dam.

Blake confirmed an interview with the District Attorney's Office, in which he described their dancing as, "huggy, huggy." He testified he even thought Westerfield might be trying to pick up on van Dam.

Earlier Monday, another woman testified she saw Westerfield dance with Danielle's mother.

Glennie Nasland, who began her testimony last week, said she was on the dance floor and saw the pair turn toward each other while dancing with other people.

Nasland, who described herself as a friend of Westerfield, said she watched them for 20 seconds before they turned away again.

In other testimony Monday, Dave Laspisa said that going to the desert to look for friends, and without bringing an all-terrain vehicle, was not an unusual activity for Westerfield.

The witness, a self-employed Poway man, said he's known the defendant for 15 years and has camped with him near the Imperial County community of Glamis for 10 years.

The witness was one of several people who testified as the defense began to move away from what happened at a Poway night spot the night before Danielle was discovered missing Feb. 2 to Westerfield's weekend wanderings.

Westerfield's attorney, Steven Feldman asked Laspisa to explain why someone would avoid Interstate 8 while taking a motorhome to the desert. Laspisa said high winds and black ice were common on that route, which traverses altitudes over 4,000 feet.

Heather Mack, a security guard at Coronado Cays, testified that she saw Westerfield drive his motorhome into the exclusive neighborhood in the afternoon or evening hours of Feb. 3.

Mack said Westerfield smiled and waved at her as he drove past her security kiosk, but she never saw him again.

The witness told Dusek that she originally told a police officer that she "vaguely remembered" seeing the defendant's recreational vehicle.

Glen Seebruch, an engineering manager at Nokia, testified earlier that Westerfield called him the morning of Feb. 1 and told him he planned to go to the desert that weekend.

Feldman, told Judge William Mudd that his case may be completed by the end of the week.

Insect expert David Faulkner is expected to testify about how long the victim's body may have been in the East County before volunteer searchers found it on Feb. 27.

Feldman has said Westerfield would have had no opportunity to dispose of the body because he was under constant police surveillance from Feb. 4 until his arrest Feb. 22.

[juzcuz]

SO SORRY --- FELDMAN GOT HIS BRENDA IMPEACHMENT YESTERDAY. WE WON'T BE SEEING BARBARA.

[jdontom]

May I recommend to everyone having popup problems, this little gem?

Thanks for the link, Already installed. Have a great Eve.

[hoosiermama]

IN other words, Brenda's testimony got impeached because of the Bar witnesses, therefore, we do not need to hear from Barbara who would have impeached Brenda's testimony if she were to testify?????Is that it?

[UCANSEE2]

EVERYBODY MUST GET ST.... to the new thread. PLEASE. THis one is over a mile long.

[Jaded]

I have a back up ping list in case somehow a ping gets missed. Then there's more than one of us to do it.

[juzcuz]

Yes---

It's not that we don't need it, I need it,I'd love to hear it. But now the judge won't allow it, since Feldman was successful yesterday.

[John Jamieson]

Guess you know a lot more about the new law than I do. I still expect the porn charges to be dropped. Silly me.

[John Jamieson]

Swinging is porn. Live porn....right in your face.

[Krodg]

Will everyone still be here for the appeal? It's too late for me to try to post anything fancy, so I'll just end with

Choo-Choo!

[fussybutt]

Thanks for that. I didn't realize they were trying both cases at once.

[connectthedots]

Was Keene one of the first to search the motor home? At one point he testified that there was not a blue towel on the motor home floor and yet later pics show there was a towel. Did someone maybe take one of Dw's towels, sipe it around the MH and then throw it on the floor?

Towels are never made with nylon fibers. Nylon does not absorb moisture very well; plus they would be very expensive to make.

[Dan Day]

Barb's the big ole' question mark in this case! I'm betting she is a firecracker and neither side can predict what damage or credibility her testimony would give them.

There's an old lawyer's adage: "Never call a witness unless you already know in advance exactly what they're going to say."

[juzcuz]

I'm getting tired,
I was thinking brenda and typing barbara. Anyway that's why BRENDA was so steamed yesterday and now why the national news is giving it some notice.

[hoosiermama]

FOrgiven! Did the Bench, Judge Mudd, actually impeach the witness or is it just a given?

[185JHP]

I believe that he will be acquitted. And as a design engineer, he can continue to design stuff and sell patents. He won't have to work in a whisper-and-taunt-prone cubicle environment. The best thing we can do for DW is to pray for him.

[John Jamieson]

2,2,6. I've been a serial husband three times over, 35 years. Our youngest is a missionary in Uruguay. He's half way this month and we are very proud of him. 7 grandchildren 0-10, including two very lovely 7 year old girls with IQs that blow me away.

I don't like porno either BTW.

[Karson]

On the other hand, a neighbor who thinks children are sex objects may well see a 7 year old as a target.

I'm playing catch-up here so you may have already answered this question. In any case, why would "a neighbor" choose Danielle over all the other children in the neighborhood? ALL of the neighbors and lots of other witnesses have testified this neighborhood has LOTS of children. What made him pick this particular child?

[theirjustdue]

"The last sentence of the previous post was to you. "

Thanks, ever so much. BARFL.

I've been trying to keep up with the threads and watch what I can of the trial, but haven't had time to post lately. Hopefully I'll have more time for active participation, after the upcoming break in the trial, when judge Mudd takes his long planned hiatus.

Glad to see most all of the regulars are still here and still as determined as ever, to get that very last word in, LOL.

[Krodg]

Thanks for the help. I hadn't noticed the type of fibers and wasn't sure.

[juzcuz]

Well-- that was my original question

When a witness is impeached what happens then? What constitutes impeachment? How many witnesses does it take?
Two or more..? Is impeachment declared by a judge or is it just implied?

Impeachment was certainly implied how many witnesses testified as to her carrousing around?????


A thought just occured to me though--- If Feldman needed Barbara for some other purpose, beside impeachment at the bar scene. I think that would be a different matter. The judge might allow Barbara to testify for that.... So who knows we might see Barbara yet...... I'd enjoy seeing that...