Posted on 02/27/2002 10:38:50 PM PST by FresnoDA
Apparent remains of Danielle found
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By Jeffrey J. Rose
February 27, 2002 EL CAJON The remains of a young girl were discovered Wednesday afternoon off Dehesa Road near the Singing Hills golf course by searchers looking for 7-year-old Danielle van Dam, missing from her home for more than three weeks. "It is a high probability it is her," said Lt. Jim Collins, a San Diego police investigator at the scene. Forensic investigators photographed the scene, and other evidence collection was expected to continue through the night as lighting equipment and generators were brought in. Authorities said it was likely that the body would not be recovered until Thursday. The remains were found 25 to 30 feet off the road among a cluster of oak trees in a grassy area, across from a quarry east of the Singing Hills Resort and Country Club. A group of searchers from the Danielle Recovery Center discovered the body after 2 p.m. and immediately called sheriff's deputies, saying they believed they had discovered the girl, Collins said. "Obviously we appreciate the effort of the volunteers," he said. "This shows the volunteers are a very vital part of the overall process. They can cover much more area than we can." Jeff Dusek, the lead prosecutor in the case against David Westerfield, the man accused of kidnapping and murdering Danielle, went to the scene. The primary police homicide unit investigating Danielle's disappearance had been in the desert during the day but traveled to the discovery area. Authorities closed Dehesa Road for a time, diverting traffic at Willow Glen and Harbison Canyon roads. Capt. Ron Newman, head of the San Diego police homicide unit, visited Danielle's parents, Brenda and Damon van Dam, at their home in Sabre Springs. Later, a priest visited. The parents made no immediate statements. San Diego Police Chief David Bejarano described the body found as that of a 3- to 4-foot white female with blond hair visible from the back, wearing a plastic necklace similar to that seen in photos of Danielle. One earring was visible, which appeared to be the same type of earring Danielle was reported to be wearing the night of Feb. 1 when she disappeared. Bejarano, speaking at a downtown news conference Wednesday night, said it likely would be at least 24 hours before a positive identification was made using dental records, and if that wasn't possible an identification using DNA would take three to four days. No weapons that might have been used in the victim's death were apparent at the scene, Bejarano said. District Attorney Paul Pfingst, who joined Bejarano at the news conference, said the investigators' preliminary assessment was that the victim had been killed elsewhere and the body dumped at the site.
Discovery of what likely is Danielle's body changes the nature of the case against Westerfield, Pfingst said. "The body is the most fertile source of clues," he said. The district attorney said the investigation at the scene would take time. "At this point speed is not an issue," Pfingst said. "We'd rather do it right than do it fast." Westerfield, 50, a neighbor of the van Dams, pleaded not guilty Tuesday to charges of murder, kidnap and possession of child pornography in connection with Danielle's disappearance. A judge Wednesday morning ordered the search warrants in the case unsealed. Westerfield, a self-employed engineer, was arrested Friday outside his attorney's office after weeks of being labeled a potential suspect in the case by police. He is being held in the county jail downtown without bond. |
Yes, I was searching this morning on Google.com for information on: Child, Murder, Kidnapping, California and came accross two such cases. One in particular stood out because it also involved a kidnapping from a home. But another one stood out even more and that was related to the Ramsey killing. It was a profile of the suspected killer. It is chilling. I did not post it because it seem rather tin-foi-hattish. But it was written by a police officer/profiler and got down to the nuts and bolts of who would do such a thing. The only thing that did not seem to fit was the fact that he was concluding it might have been a police officer who committed the crime. That does not seem to fit here.
Wow, a parents worst nightmare. My wife would stop breathing and die. I'd probably kill the nearest person to me hoping to be shot dead.
Yes, but don't forget that she was bearing a little guilt herself because she had left her child unattended at the mall while she went off to meet a lover.
So do I. I have a lot of gut feelings about this whole thing.
People can say that we shouldn't judge the parents by their public emotion and that may be true, but things still don't add up.
The apparent absence of emotion; the swinging; the ignored security breach; the dad hearing nothing; Brenda asking about book deals; Brenda calling the video of Danielle a "tear-jerker"; and many other things, make this couple appear differently than most of us would expect.
Fair or not, it is not unreasonable to find them odd and maybe suspicious. It doesn't exonerate Westerfield but it sure screams out for looking closely at the parents. Who knows what kind of relationship Brenda and Westerfield had.....or for that matter, Damon and Westerfield?
If reports are true, they are all sexual deviants. It should do more than just raise eyebrows.
He has a grown daughter (about 20 years old). Maybe she can shed some light as well...
Your speculations on this item relating to the plastic necklace to implicate bondage is reckless. A search warrant regarding a kidnap/murder victim will always state these items. If a rope or portion of rope was used to restrain the victim, it will have hair, skin and blood imbedded in its fibers for the forensic team to find. Rope in the garage can be matched to rope found on a bound victim. Tape residue on victim can be matched to tape rolls found in the suspects home or vehicle. Since kidnappers frequently bind their victims, binding materials are always named in the search warrant. It is SOP and in no way is it ominous or hints at darker thinks.
That doesn't necessarily mean anything. The earring could have just fallen off while her body was being moved, especially if they were clips. It's probably just lying hidden in the area where no one has seen it yet.
Agreed. The video clips and school pic used could be from the most recent of time.
I agree with your feelings.....something's not quite right here.
Oops I forgot about that.
I thought I remembered reading somewhere that one of the earrings was in her bedroom....that they were looking for the matching pair (which she apparently was still wearing) it early on....am I mistaken?
Yep. I'm wondering if the father had much *more* to do with this than we realize.
Bingo.
I thought this odd, too. This case has too many oddities to be coincidence.
Kinda reminds you of the Ramseys doesn't it?
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