Posted on 07/22/2002 3:02:31 PM PDT by FresnoDA
Westerfield's trial had been in recess since July 11 so the judge could take a previously scheduled vacation.
Westerfield, 50, lived two doors from Danielle, who vanished after her father put her to bed the night of Feb. 1. Searchers found the girl's nude body on Feb. 27 along a rural roadside east of San Diego.
A forensic entomologist, testifying Monday for the defense, said Danielle's body could not have been dumped at the roadside before Feb. 12, according to his analysis of flies and larvae collected during an autopsy. The blow flies that were found on the body typically descend on a cadaver shortly after death, but it can take longer in cooler temperatures, entomologist Neal Haskell said. Based on his analysis of the temperatures in the area at the time, Haskell (pictured, right) put "the time of colonization" likely at Feb. 14 and no earlier than Feb. 12.
Prosecutors challenged the defense's weather data.
Haskell's testimony puts the time the body may have been dumped several days earlier than suggested by a previous defense witness, entomologist David Faulkner. The defense has seized upon the time of death, which could not be precisely determined, to suggest that the body was dumped at a time when Westerfield was under constant police surveillance.
Westerfield was put under observation soon after Danielle disappeared, according to police testimony. He was arrested on Feb. 22.
During Haskell's testimony about insects devouring Danielle's body, the girl's parents, Brenda and Damon van Dam, stared at the floor as they sat in the back row of the courtroom. It is the first time that Damon van Dam has been in court since Judge William Mudd banned him from the proceedings almost a month ago as a security risk. Mudd restored his trial privileges just before going on vacation.
Lawyers for Westerfield have said they expect to offer two to three more days of testimony.
The expert yesterday went over that and said it was not unusual nor inconsistent, hands and feet many times mummify first...
: AND YOU INDICATED YOU AND KARSTEN --
A: KARSTEN.
Q: -- SEARCHED ON THE WATER SIDE OF THE ROAD THAT'S DEPICTED IN PHOTOGRAPH A.
A: THAT'S WHERE WE STARTED OUR SEARCH, YES.
Q: AND THE OTHER PART OF YOUR GROUP WAS ON THE HILL SIDE OF THE ROAD.
A: I DON'T KNOW EXACTLY WHERE THEY WERE. THEY WERE JUST BEHIND THIS MOUNTAIN; THEY COULD HAVE BEEN ON BOTH SIDES OF THE ROAD.
Q: AS YOU WERE COMING DOWN THE WATER SIDE OF THE ROAD, --
A: M-HM.
Q: -- WHAT WERE YOU DOING?
A: WE WERE LOOKING UNDER BUSHES, PICKING UP BOXES, LOOKING EVERYWHERE WE COULD.
What's Westerfield's reason for keeping dancing with Brenda a secret?
TIME LINE...DW's statement didn't match the facts:
"SNIP...and he gets there it's too late. the campground at the strand closes at 7:00 o'clock at night he says, and there are gates at the silver strand that close and don't let the latecomers inside. so he can't get in there. ~~snip~~ but you will learn, however, is that back at the gas station, when he was getting gas, he got a receipt. the gas station showed he was getting gas in carmel mountain at 7:12 in the evening. after dark. sunset at about 5:23 that night. getting gas in carmel mountain at 7:12. and he says he then goes down and tries to get into the silver strand when they close at 7:00. ~~snip~~ he went over to the cays and spent the night there. a coronado police officer, mike britton, working for coronado ~~snip~~ showed up at the cays around 2:00 or 3:00 o'clock in the morning ..~~snip~~ made contact with the people snip~~ it was not the defendant~~snip~~ he did not see the defendant illegally parked down at the cays that night. the defendant's story is that from the cays he wakes up the following morning and goes from the cays back up to the storage area in sky ridge, where he keeps his motor home. he says he goes there directly, shows up there fairly early in the morning, and kind of parks alongside of the road because he doesn't want to disturb the neighbors, wake the neighbors up because he gets there so early. he says he sets up the motor home, parks it there, gets in the s.u.v. and drives home. drives straight home. and that's where he is contacted by johnny keene and detective mo parga that morning at 9:00 o'clock or so~~snip~~ "
http://video.uniontrib.com/news/metro/danielle/transcripts/20020710-9999-pm1.html question of bug doc by dusek Q SO IF THE BODY HAD MUMMIFIED, THAT WOULD AGAIN PUSH BACK THE INITIAL TIME WHEN THE BUGS COULD HAVE GOTTEN ON THE BODY.
A IT COULD HAVE AFFECTED A BIT THE ABSOLUTE NUMBERS OF INSECTS ATTRACTED TO THE BODY. AND PARTICULARLY FLIES.
Q THE MUMMIFICATION, IF IN FACT THAT WAS A CONDITION OF A BODY, THAT WOULD EXTEND OR -- EXTEND THE MAXIMUM AMOUNT OF TIME THE BODY WAS EXPOSED.
A YES.
Q WAS THIS BODY MUMMIFIED?
A I'M NOT A PATHOLOGIST. BUT IN MY EXPERIENCE, THE BODY WAS RATHER DRY, PARTICULARLY THE EXTERIOR SURFACE, THE SKIN
Environmental consitions can delay decomposition.
Desert climates with low humidity not only decrease or obliterate fly and maggots activity, but can also halt other forms of decomposition. Very dry climates may cause a body to naturally mummify, converting its skin and tendons to a leathery and parchment-like wrapping surrounding the bones, while the organs decay by autolysis and putrefaction. Paradoxically, heavy rainfall also slows fly activity, including egg laying. Maggot activity, however, continues-but with fewer maggots.
DW didn't stay where he said he stayed that night.
That had occurred to me to. Some interesting facts.
The searchers at the Dehesa Rd site were first attracted to the SMELL of the DEAD DOG CARCASS.
After finding it, they somehow went down the street ,across the road, up and six foot embankment and then 50 feet of so further to find Danielle's body behind a tree. There was very little, or NO smell at all coming from her body.
The ME and BUG guys testified to this also.
Wonder what KIND of DOG it was?
Exactly what I've been saying. WHY did he conceal his first drycleaning trip from the police? WHY are some discounting "Dave's" own words???
It could happen. But from the courtroom activities today it appears they may play a media video and rest their case.
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