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Account for Danielle's search still has $24,000 (What about money promised to Laura Recovery?)
Union Trib ^ | March 31, 2002 | Kristen Green

Posted on 03/31/2002 1:52:12 PM PST by FresnoDA

Account set up for Danielle's search still has about $24,000



Van Dams undecided on how money will be used

By Kristen Green
UNION-TRIBUNE STAFF WRITER

March 24, 2002

altAfter Danielle van Dam was abducted from her Sabre Springs home, neighbors, friends and even strangers volunteered to help out. Some put up fliers in storefronts around the county, and others joined the search party. But many also opened their checkbooks.

As of Friday, more than $33,000 had been donated by people from New Jersey to Oregon.

During the search for the 7-year-old, donations totaling more than $10,600 flowed into an account in Danielle's name. And since the discovery of her body in rural East County nearly a month after she was reported missing, an additional $22,800 has been deposited.

"We didn't go open an account and ask for money," said family friend Bill Libby, who handled donations for the van Dams. "I opened the account because people wanted to donate money."

Initially, the family expected to use the donations to pay for search expenses, like posters and fliers. After Danielle's body was found, the family Web site said additional donations would be used to pay memorial expenses.

But Libby said the family's expenses have been limited because of numerous donations, from fliers to cremation fees. So far, the van Dams have spent $4,200 of the donations to buy banners, posters and buttons.

And they are writing a $5,000 check to the Laura Recovery Center, which coordinated the search for Danielle.

The family hasn't decided how to use the remaining $24,000.

"I'm sure in due time that they will turn their attention to the appropriate and productive use of those funds, but right now they're really still dealing with the loss of their daughter," said family spokeswoman Sara Muller Fraunces.

Close friends have suggested the van Dams take their time considering how the money will be used. Libby has said the funds could be used to pay for counseling for the family, and the van Dams are considering establishing a local foundation to conduct searches for missing San Diego children.

After Danielle's parents realized she wasn't in her bed the morning of Feb. 2, people began donating money to cover search expenses. Libby tried to open an account at Wells Fargo on behalf of the van Dams.

But the account had to be set up by a nonprofit organization, and a family friend who attends Community Bible Church in Scripps Ranch asked the pastor if the church would sponsor the account. Even though the van Dams aren't members of his congregation, the Rev. Barry Minkow agreed.

Minkow, who was convicted of securities and bank fraud in the late 1980s and served a 71/2-year prison sentence, doesn't have access to the van Dam account, church treasurer Bruce Brown said.

Brown said he is the only person who can withdraw money from the account, taking requests for checks directly from Libby, who acts on the van Dams' behalf.



TOPICS: Crime/Corruption; Extended News; News/Current Events; US: California
KEYWORDS: vandam; westerfield
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To: ~Kim4VRWC's~
Less time for those paid by salary to get their case together, while those paid by the hour will be burning the midnight oil...look how unprepeared the DA was for the PH and even suggested to the Defense to ask for a continuance..
241 posted on 04/01/2002 5:49:28 PM PST by rolling_stone
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To: Valpal1
Interesting case here, fingernail clipping found elswhere...read the interview of suspect as his mouth goes faster than his brain he won't listen to his atty and shut up...LOL

Mother Murdered

242 posted on 04/01/2002 5:52:01 PM PST by rolling_stone
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To: Southflanknorthpawsis, rolling_stone
I can't find the article I read about him requesting a speedy trial...it might have been on about.com/crime website..

this one says
Lawyers for David Westerfield, 50, also chose not to "waive time," meaning the case will go to trial within 60 days. Superior Court Judge Peter Deddeh set a trial date of May 17.
The case will be tried in the courtroom of Judge William D. Mudd, 10News reported.
Defense attorney Milton Silverman told 10News that the fact that Westerfield chose not to waive time may signal that his lawyers will not seek to move the trial out of San Diego.
Silverman said he anticipated that the trial would last for upwards of three months.

243 posted on 04/01/2002 6:00:57 PM PST by Freedom2specul8
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To: rolling_stone
That was a great link.

Clipping the nails from a mummified corpse would be easier than taking scrapings, even if, or esp. if, she was a nail biter.

244 posted on 04/01/2002 6:58:49 PM PST by Valpal1
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To: MizSterious
we have only this man's word to go on.

"This man's word" is entirely indicative that they were following procedure.

245 posted on 04/01/2002 7:03:47 PM PST by Valpal1
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To: mommya
test
246 posted on 04/01/2002 7:11:25 PM PST by mommya
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To: ~Kim4VRWC's~
The defense has until April 17th to ask for a delay or to move the trial.

The less time the prosecution has to develop physical evidence the better. Wouldn't want them to have time to make exhaustive and conclusive results on every speck collected.

If there is a lot of physical evidence, then going to trial quickly helps the defense call it into question, as perhaps testing would be rushed/inadequate. Also helps to take advantage of the Van Damming media hype.

247 posted on 04/01/2002 7:17:25 PM PST by Valpal1
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To: Valpal1;FresnoDA;all
(I hope this works - I've tried to post it twice already)

Have we seen this one yet?

Many contribute toward finding missing girl | Family vows all funds will be used for search

The San Diego Union - Tribune; San Diego, Calif.; Feb 11, 2002; Kristen Green;

Words in Document: 699

Available Formats: Buy Full Text

Abstract: It's unclear how the money will be spent. But last night, Danielle's parents, Damon and Brenda van Dam, said through a spokeswoman that all donations will go toward the search for their daughter. Any money left over will go to a charity, said the spokeswoman, Sara Muller Fraunces.

"We don't want one cent out of this," Damon van Dam said through Fraunces. Bill Libby, a friend of the van Dams who helped set up an account at Wells Fargo Bank, said the donations probably will be spent on posters, banners and ribbons -- anything that will remind people to look for Danielle. More than $6,900 has been raised, but none of the money has been spent.

He said he paid Fraunces, who owns the marketing-consulting firm OutSmart, a $500 retainer fee out of his own checkbook. Fraunces said she returned the retainer check and will work free.

I hadn't seen this Union Tribune stuff before. Does anyone have a subscription and want to post the whole article? (If you don't have a subscription you have to pay to see the whole thing.)

So, Muller Fraunces was the PR 9 days after the reported abduction. She was probably the first one - the one that worked for free.

Was it possibly Bill Libby who wanted the Van Dams to have PR? Wonder why he paid the retainer?

248 posted on 04/01/2002 7:23:57 PM PST by mommya
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To: Valpal1;FresnoDA;all
Here's another abstract from the Union Tribune...

ANSWERING THE CALL | Ragtag team joins in mission to locate girl

The San Diego Union - Tribune; San Diego, Calif.; Feb 28, 2002; Joe Hughes;

Words in Document: 633

Available Formats: Buy Full Text

Abstract: Thousands of volunteers -- ordinary folks, some with children about Danielle's age -- covered untold square miles in the last three weeks. They looked from San Diego to Imperial County to Mexico. And they refused to give up even when it became painfully clear Danielle would not be found alive.

Members of what the van Dams called the core support team included: center director Diane Halfman, a San Diego police officer who retired from the force after 11 years; community coordinator Susan Wintersteen, a neighbor; fund coordinator Bill Libby, a family friend; communications coordinator Paula Call, whose daughter was in Danielle's second-grade class at Creekside Elementary; and Sara Muller Fraunces, a communications consultant.

2 PICS; 1. [Fiona Oberrick] of the Danielle Search Center talked with Bill Schweizer yesterday just before volunteers went out on a search. 2. A group of volunteers met yesterday morning before starting a search for clues to Danielle van Dam's whereabouts. Thousands of volunteers have been involved in the search for the missing girl.; Credit: 1,2. Dan Trevan / Union-Tribune photos

This one just clarifies that Susan Wintersteen is a neighbor who may have spoken for the Van Dam's - but Muller Fraunces was the PR.

249 posted on 04/01/2002 7:31:35 PM PST by mommya
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To: Jaded;mommya;MizSterious;~Kim4VRWC's~;demsux; Southflanknorthpawsis;rolling_stone
Thanks for the clearer photo in your #191, MizSterious. Okay, looking carefully at this photo, we see an irregularly-shaped mark in the yellowish-white, band (#1), upper left. Then moving into the pink band, from upper left to lower right, we have the supposed four fingernail marks: the first of these is a distinct rectangle (#2), next we have a dumbbell shape (#3), then what appears to be a sort of crescent shape (#4), but somewhat irregular, and, lastly, another dumbbell shape(#5). All marks in a perfect arc.

Given the distinct punched-put rectangular shape of mark #2, mommya’s idea of a bottle cap is a good one (the “teeth” of those plastic strips you pull off a gallon plastic milk jug produce such a punched-out silhouette when pressed against skin – yup, did a little experiment of my own!), but then there are the two dumbbell shapes I can’t reproduce from my own particular milk jug thingy ((Mayfield’s brand))…maybe you guys can try with other brands? )

demsux’s postulation that a chain of some sort might have produced the marks also has merit (and good thinking, I might add!). Look at a bicycle chain or a chain from a chainsaw. Try pressing it against your arm. Either type of chain produces marks resulting in alternating rectangle/dumbbell/rectangle shapes when pressed against skin (in my case of experimentation, the chain was still attached to the chainsaw and therefore could not produce the arc shape, but did make these alternating patterns). The scale of such a chain would have to be rather small, not the sort I should think one would use when extricating a stuck RV, though. If this is what made the mark, it would have to have been a bit of refuse down in the sand. And it would have to have left its mark when DW braced his arm against it as it leveraged against a tyre of the RV while was trying to dig out. (Picture is DW digging in the sand, chain discarded and buried in the sand, chain is wedged between his arm and the tyre as he is leveraging out sand or some bulky piece of debris buried the sand, an incompletely burnt piece of firewood or such. The angle and placement of the arc is neither consistent nor is it inconsistent with such a scenario, so far as I can tell, provided the chain was loose and not attached to anything. Remember folks, that such a chain, unattached to anything, will naturally tend to curl.)

Valpal (#226): Hooray that you have a six-year-old and can do “field trials”! (I say this because it it obvious from your posts that you would never unnecessarily frighten your beloved child, but would just make a game of it.) This is very helpful, and thanks for sharing your results with us.

My problem – hey, maybe I’m a klutz – is that the more I try to get the thumb to line up in a perfect arc with the fingers, the more my fingers go awry. Is this me, the shape of my hands? Can your kid accomplish it, Valpal?

Some people have said that if the marks are from fingernails, they are too “dug in” and “stationary” vs. “trailing” in nature. Well, if the marks were made when trying to fend off an assailant, then I’d agree. However, if the marks were made when the child was being suffocated, then “stationary” and “dug-in” would be expected. It’s why there is such an expression as “death grip” in English. But if this were indeed the child’s “death grip” on the arm of her murderer, one would expect a more natural “thumb opposing the fingers” sort of mark. Do let us know, Valpal – can your child produce such a perfect arc with thumb and all fingers replicating the picture?

Um, Kim, if he cleaned and bleached his victim’s fingernails before dumping her, then it doesn’t fit in with the “panicked state” and the “impulsive” nature of the crime you have postulated. You can’t have it both ways. A little far-fetched, this bleaching the poor little girl’s nails anyway. Also, it further complicates the time line.

My belief is that, if they find DW DNA under Danielle’s nails, it will come out at the trial, DW will be nailed, end of story. If no DNA under her nails, then these scratches are not relevant -- unless DW blood/DNA was discovered on thorny bushes at Dehasa. Either would seal DW’s doom.

Ref Danielle biting her nails: if they were bitten down to the quick, this is discussion is moot, anyway. We don’t know the condition of her nails when she was murdered. It was reported that Brenda took her to have manicures to try to cure the child’s nail-biting problem. We don’t know whether these efforts produced results yet.

Guess all this started with my #181?

250 posted on 04/01/2002 7:43:58 PM PST by wonders
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To: Valpal1
You were originally pinged on my post #250. But I kept getting an error mesage (three times) that "Valpal1" did not exist. So had to do it this way, with a direct reply. Sorry. Guess they're still working out the new software update on FR. I sure didn't mean to insult you or leave you out, for sure!
251 posted on 04/01/2002 7:47:46 PM PST by wonders
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To: FresnoDA
#174-Oh, Fresno, I thought that they said the friends left at 2:30, they only stayed about 15 minutes. Time to close the doors, eat cold pizza, make out and leave....

And you've not answered my freepmail questions.

252 posted on 04/01/2002 7:49:18 PM PST by Jaded
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To: MizSterious;mommya;~Kim4VRWC's~;FresnoDa
The explanation for the scratches was.....(drum roll please...) digging the RV out. You know scooping sand out with your hands while it is sunk into the ground...it's doable.
253 posted on 04/01/2002 7:54:42 PM PST by Jaded
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To: ~Kim4VRWC's~
Which version is this? They have also stated that BvD noticed the light on when they got home. And Denise closed the garage door. The friends left around 2:30 and they went to bed. 3ish DvD got up to pee, and noticed the light. He/they didn't notice it earlier because the bedpost blocked the view of the alarm panel. He meandered down stairs and closed the slider. Ah, the shifting sands of public record, oops the shifting sands were in the desert.
254 posted on 04/01/2002 7:58:39 PM PST by Jaded
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To: ~Kim4VRWC's~;RnMomof7;wonders
He said that he was laying under the sheet, Barb was laying on top of the sheet, they were kissing and he was rubbing her back. He didn't know where Brenda was. Sounds platonic to me.
255 posted on 04/01/2002 8:00:44 PM PST by Jaded
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To: ~Kim4VRWC's~
DVD did not say admit it was a sexual, greeting/friendship kiss or what.

He did not elaborate beyond the kiss on that particular occasion (doesn't mean it wasn't more) but he did testify to having a sexual relationship with Barbara. I'd say that leaves open a number of possibilities and perhaps, probabilities.

256 posted on 04/01/2002 8:09:15 PM PST by Southflanknorthpawsis
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To: Jaded
He said that he was laying under the sheet, Barb was laying on top of the sheet, they were kissing and he was rubbing her back. He didn't know where Brenda was. Sounds platonic to me.

Yea don't they call that the "family bed" or...the "Rodney King size"???

257 posted on 04/01/2002 8:09:35 PM PST by RnMomof7
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To: Southflanknorthpawsis
sexual relationship,he did? During his PH testimony? WOW, I missed that...must have been either during a commercial or the real media player messing up. I had them both on.
258 posted on 04/01/2002 8:11:49 PM PST by Freedom2specul8
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To: MizSterious;Kim4VRWC's~
"Did you know there were people against john walsh too? "
Perhaps you're too young to remember the kidnapping of Wash's son. I'm not. There was a very good reason why people gave Walsh the fish-eye: he hung around with a lot of lowlifes at the time (apparently still does), including people who owned casinos off-shore and tended to break peoples' knees if they didn't repay loans on time. A lot of people, newsies included, thought at first maybe this was mob payback. It wasn't, but their suspicions were not entirely unfounded--at least in how he lived his life.

I saw Walsh on TV defending parents that live like the VD's ..saying they are "good " parents..I decided that either he did not know what "good "parents looked like or he was on their payroll

259 posted on 04/01/2002 8:13:27 PM PST by RnMomof7
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To: MizSterious
but of one thing I am dead sure: the van Dams are horrible, evil people who should have their other two children removed from the home. Immediately. Everything they do reinforces this conviction.

You are one smart mama

260 posted on 04/01/2002 8:14:44 PM PST by RnMomof7
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