Testimony: DNA, fingerprints from motor home link Westerfield to Danielle
Posted on 03/12/2002 6:35:18 PM PST by FresnoDA
Testimony: DNA, fingerprints from motor home link Westerfield to Danielle
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 Thousands of computer porn images, videos reported foundBy Jeffrey J. RoseSIGNONSANDIEGO March 12, 2002 SAN DIEGO – DNA from bloodstains on David Westerfield's jacket and inside his motor home matched that taken from underwear belonging to Danielle van Dam, and fingerprints taken from the vehicle matched those of the dead 7-year-old girl, police specialists testified Tuesday. The testimony came at a preliminary hearing for Westerfield, a 50-year-old self-employed engineer who lived two doors away from the van Dams in Sabre Springs. He has pleaded not guilty to charges of murder, kidnapping and possessing child pornography in connection with Danielle's death. Jeffrey B. Graham, a fingerprint analyst for the San Diego Police Department, said fingerprints taken from a cabinet next to the bed in Westerfield's motor home matched Danielle's.
"There is absolutely no doubt in my mind that Danielle made those prints," Graham said. Investigators believe Danielle was abducted from her bedroom the night of Feb. 1 and taken over the weekend to the Silver Strand near Coronado by Westerfield in his motor home, who then drove to the desert and back to the beach again. If convicted, Westerfield could face the death penalty. Her naked, severely decomposed body was found off Dehesa Road by a volunteer search team on Feb. 27. Graham said he obtained full handprints from the hands of Danielle's body, which though mummified when found were rehydrated with embalming fluid following an autopsy Feb. 28. Fingerprints taken from the motor home matched those prints, Graham said. Annette Peer, a police DNA analyst, said DNA from a bloodstain taken from the carpet in the motor home and more taken from a bloodstain on a jacket Westerfield left at a dry cleaner Feb. 4 matched that of a yellowish stain on underwear taken from Danielle's bedroom. Peer further testified that the DNA was consistent with DNA from offspring of Brenda and Damon van Dam, who both gave "reference" samples for testing. In other testimony Tuesday:
Detective James M. Watkins, a computer forensic examiner for San Diego police, said some of the sexually explicit images portrayed bestiality, bondage and what appeared to be underage females. Watkins estimated the number of pornographic images involving minors at fewer than 100. Watkins said he also had discovered eight photos of a girlfriend of Westerfield's and her young teen-age daughter, with some of the photos of the daughter in sexually suggestive poses. Under questioning by Westerfield's attorney, Steven Feldman, Watkins said he could not determine whether Westerfield had obtained or viewed the pornographic images or whether it was someone else who had access to the computer, including Westerfield's 18-year-old son.
Hergenroeather said Mills told him that she had known Westerfield for several years as a customer, and that he seemed unusually upset that morning.
Feldman peppered LeAlcala with questions on how the fingerprints were gathered, who had access to the motor home, what steps were taken to avoid contaminating the evidence, and on her experience level and education – all in an apparent quest to call into question the believability of the evidence. LeAlcala said one of the items taken from the cleaners was the jacket. The jacket later was found to have the bloodstain matched in DNA testing by Peer. The hearing, which began Monday, is the first opportunity in court for prosecutors to document their evidence against Westerfield. The hearing is scheduled to resume Thursday. |
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By Alex Roth
UNION-TRIBUNE STAFF WRITER
March 13, 2002
Authorities searching David Westerfield's home found computer images of child pornography, bestiality and animated cartoons of young girls being tied up and raped, a detective testified yesterday.
A prosecutor said the materials "indicate motive for why he did what he did." Westerfield, 50, is charged with kidnapping and killing 7-year-old Danielle van Dam.
Also yesterday, prosecutors presented evidence for the first time that Danielle's fingerprints, as well as her blood, were found inside Westerfield's motor home.
Among the images introduced as evidence during the second day of a preliminary hearing in San Diego Superior Court were several photos of a bikini-clad teen-ager identified as the daughter of Westerfield's girlfriend. Like the victim, the name of the girl in the pictures was Danielle.
Police seized those and the other images from computers and disks in Westerfield's Sabre Springs home, where he lived two houses from Danielle and her parents.
Prosecutors continued to build their case in a hearing that will determine whether they have enough evidence to hold Westerfield, a self-employed engineer, for trial on charges of abducting and killing Danielle, who was reported missing from her home Feb. 2.
Prosecutors introduced forensic evidence and pornographic computer images. They also presented testimony that police say they had caught Westerfield in at least one lie.
When Westerfield was arrested Feb. 22, police announced that traces of Danielle's blood had been found in his motor home and on an item of his clothing. Nothing had been said about Danielle's fingerprints until yesterday.
Police did not confirm the fingerprint match until after Danielle's body was found Feb. 27 in a hollow east of El Cajon, said Jeffrey Graham, a fingerprint analyst with the San Diego Police Department's crime lab.
Graham testified he obtained Danielle's fingerprints after retrieving her hands from the San Diego County Medical Examiner's Office on Feb. 28. Although the hands were severely "mummified," he was able to obtain fingerprints by using embalming fluid to rehydrate the hands, he testified.
The prints were compared with several prints taken from Westerfield's motor home and were found to match two fingerprints – a left middle finger and a left ring finger – found on a cabinet near the bed of the motor home, Graham said.
"Absolutely no doubt in my mind that Danielle van Dam made those prints," Graham testified under questioning by prosecutor Jeff Dusek.
During cross-examination by Westerfield's lead attorney, Steven Feldman, Graham acknowledged authorities have no way of knowing how old a fingerprint is.
"So the prints could have been there for a year?" Feldman asked.
"Could have been," Graham answered.
Feldman also asked whether it was possible the prints on the cabinet were left by someone casually lounging on the bed. Graham was not permitted to answer on grounds of speculation.
Yesterday's hearing also marked the first time prosecutors publicly discussed the issue of motive. Privately, law enforcement sources have said they believe Westerfield kidnapped the girl with the intent to sexually assault her.
On questioning by Superior Court Judge H. Ronald Domnitz, Dusek said evidence of motive was one of the reasons he was introducing the pornographic computer images taken from Westerfield's home.
San Diego police Detective James Watkins testified that police copied the hard drives of four personal computers, including a laptop and a Palm Pilot, in Westerfield's home. They also seized three disks and three CD-ROMS found in an envelope on a bookcase in the house.
Westerfield's computer files were "highly organized" into various folders and subfolders, some with titles that made sexual references, said Watkins, a computer-forensics specialist.
Although police found thousands of pictures on the hard drives and disks, fewer than 100 were of a "questionable" nature, Watkins testified.
The latter category included pictures of young females engaged in sexual poses and acts with animals; minor females engaged in sexual poses or sex acts; and graphic animated cartoons depicting young girls being bound with rope or leather and sexually assaulted, Watkins said.
Westerfield's collection of computer photos also included pictures of his girlfriend's daughter in a bikini, Watkins said. The girl was in her "early to mid-teens" and was pictured in various poses that might be interpreted as sexually provocative, Watkins testified.
On cross-examination, defense attorney Robert Boyce asked Watkins, "There's nothing illegal about taking pictures of your girlfriend's daughter, is there?"
Watkins said there was not.
Attorneys did not elaborate during the hearing on the woman identified as Westerfield's girlfriend or on her daughter. Domnitz has imposed a gag order preventing attorneys from discussing the evidence with the media. It was unclear whether the woman is a current or former girlfriend of Westerfield.
In addition to the computer evidence, a criminalist in the San Diego Police Department's crime lab testified yesterday about the overwhelming odds that the blood found in Westerfield's motor home and on his jacket belonged to Danielle.
Annette Peer, a forensic biologist who handles DNA testing, said the odds that a blood stain found on carpeting in Westerfield's motor home belonged to someone other than Danielle was one in 4.9 billion or even less.
The odds that someone other than Danielle was the source of a blood stain found on Westerfield's jacket was one in 25 quadrillion or even less, Peer testified.
Feldman said the defense team would not mount an aggressive attack on DNA evidence during the preliminary hearing. He told Domnitz he did not want to reveal strategy at a hearing in which the prosecution's burden of proof is relatively low.
The jacket containing the blood stain was seized by police from a Poway dry cleaners, San Diego police Detective James Hergenroeather testified.
Westerfield brought the jacket, two comforters and two comforter covers to the Twin Peak's Cleaners & Shirt Laundry on Feb. 4, Hergenroeather said.
A clerk who spoke to the detective said Westerfield – who normally was very chatty and once asked her on a date – seemed upset and withdrawn on that day, Hergenroeather testified.
Yesterday's hearing began with San Diego police Detective Johnny Keene finishing his testimony from the previous day. Keene testified that police interviewed a park ranger at Silver Strand State Beach in Coronado who had encountered Westerfield in his motor home Feb. 3.
Although Westerfield told police he drove to the beach in his motor home because he had forgotten his wallet and did not have enough gas to head out for a planned trip to the Imperial County desert, the park ranger told police that Westerfield showed him his wallet that day during a dispute over payment, Keene testified.
The hearing is scheduled to resume at 9 a.m. tomorrow.
sw
Especially in light of what the SDPD told the press. What ever happened to the "so much clorox it confused the dogs) story? It really makes them look bad. I think what is going on here is that they are trying to pump up the case a little bit, but it's those kinds of shenanigans--if that's what they are--that will lose them their case. People hate being lied to, once they find out.
Please define what you call stepping on toes--just so folks can avoid it, and thereby avoid being banned. Also, is this reciprocal, or just one way?
sw
There was a report made out, but he didn't GET IT!? Now, that's not a good thing. Heads should roll.
sw
While it is easy for me to be critical I would think taxpayers would like to get their moneys worth and have confidence in the PD...Overall I think the Police did a better job than I originally thought, but it remains to be seen...
Sounds like the PD searched his computer monday evening subject to warrant, obviously at that time he was a target of investigation..Quick police work after only talking to him that morning...
Good question!!
I meant the prints of the other two girls....three different sets of prints were found...
I am unclear as to where the prints where; the underside of a cabinet over the bed or the interior of a cabinet door or the exterior of a cabinet door?
the victim Danielle's prints were found on the outside face of a cabinet about 1 1/2 to 2 feet above the bed. Her left hand was oriented "more than slightly" backwards (my estimate about 45 degrees from straight up)giving impression she could have been laying on bed (or sitting/standing?)and reached up and touched it depending on the length of her arms...(most adult's armspan from fingertip to fingertip is approximately same as their height)if it happened after she was abducted, apparently her arms were not bound....other testimony indicated the bedroom was at back of motorhome, anyone have the manufacturers name maybe we can get a pic of inside or floorplan...
Can you direct me to the testimony of that? WOW, I hadn't heard that! A lot of people were wondering if that's why he bought the RV..to kidnapp little girls. Did htey say if the size of the other 2 hand prints were of a child and how do you know it was 2 other girls?
One thing about ALL those computers. Keep in mind that Westerfield worked out of his home, and holds patents on several of his inventions. I've tried to dig up the article where I read about what he invented, but can't find it.
Seems I remember one of his inventions was an artifical replacement joint for a knuckle...or something like that? My point is that he more than likely, used his computers for his work. Nothing strange about so many computers, IMHO.
Later, sw
Thanks to the "spectre" comments, I will not temper thoughts and discussion. Wouldn't be prudent!! I was TRYING to be a moderate......but I feel so cheap, so dirty, so much lie a politician!!!
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A police computer specialist testified that some 64,000 pornographic images and 2,200 MPEG-format videos were found on computers and computer disks taken from Westerfield's home.