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.

[Freedom2specul8]

LOL you guys are crackin me up this morning...

[Rheo]

subject to recall

[Freedom2specul8]

She was awful and dusek made some great points..

[Rheo]

Detective Frank Gerbak..SDPD...NE Division

[Rheo]

interviewed Denise Kemal

[Rheo]

2/2...5pm in afternoon...in interview room at NE station

[Rheo]

learned she had been at Dad's...did you ask her if she had seen anything suspicious..sidebar

[Politicalmom]

Do you also object to the child porn spam?

[Rheo]

Heather Mack testified to seeing DW's MH parked at the Coronado Cays

[Southflanknorthpawsis]

I just thought I'd ask if anyone else besides you-know-who saw any "good points" Dusek made? I saw a big zero. Did I miss something?

[Freedom2specul8]

She clearly was resentful of being there and doesn't like her job very well. If she did, she woudl have reported what she saw when she saw dw's photo on tv. She's a big baby.

[Jrabbit]

Darn! He(DW) told the truth about that too?

[FresnoDA]

Yes Maam'!!!

[Valpal1]

I knew that I'd catch some flak, but it was too irresistable. My kids are screaming from the car, so I gotta go.

The real beauty of posts like that, is the sour and the humorless expose themselves pdq.

[Rheo]

You must have missed the same thing I did....couldn't understand her tho, but I haven't heard Dusek make any great points on other witnesses either.

[FresnoDA]

MOTORHOME!!
(Sung to the Paul Simon tune, Koda-Chrome)

Dedictaed to Val and to Kim....

VERSE 1

When I think back, to all the gas, I had to pur-chase.......

From driving round the San Di-e-go hills......

Oh if just on-ly,

I would have,

Pur-chased a dumb Yugo.......

I would be at home, right now drinking a beer......

VERSE 2

But for some rea-son, I just had to head out camping......

From the desert and to, the shining sea.......

Now my whole life is being viewed just like a movie......

And Feldman owns my whole, poster-ity....

CHORUS

MOTOR-Ho Ho Home....

You gave me years....of freedom...

Driving a-round, the California state.....

MOTOR-Ho Ho Home....

Now you have giv'n me worries...

Nothing but trouble....a flurry...

Motor-home........I hate you so.....

HARMONICA SOLO HERE!!!

 

 

[Freedom2specul8]

Not so much humorless, but lack of ability to read between the lines.. HAVE FUN!~

[spectre]

BAWHAHAHAHAHAH!!! You da man, Doc!

sw

[Rheo]

DW seems to have told the truth so far....I would have thought more statements he made in the 22+ hours interrigations would have been impeached..but not yet.

[the-gooroo]

I would really like to know if she (denise) showed any emotion when she found out that her close friends daughter may have been abducted from her home. She sure didn't show any during her testimony!