2nd Bug Expert Bolsters Westerfield Defense: (Dusek Melting Down Before Juries Eyes!!)

SAN DIEGO -- The trial of David Westerfield resumed Monday with more testimony about insects, as defense lawyers tried to show that their client was not the person who dumped Danielle van Dam's body along a two-lane road in East County.

Before testimony began, Judge William Mudd warned jurors to ignore last week's murder of a young girl in nearby Orange County. Mudd said that the abduction, sexual assault and murder of 5-year-old Samantha Runnion "bears no relation" to the trial of David Westerfield.

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.

Neal Haskell, forensic entomologist 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.

Do you think it was more likely Damon or a random psycho serial killer?

Percentage-wise I would go with the random killer.

The parents BEHAVIOUR shows more of a GUILTY because the didn't pay attention to why they hadn't seen Danielle for hours, and then, hoped she would show up, be OK, then started realizing she had been gone too long, and their whole family, and life were on the chopping block if they ever let out the truth.

Damon may have been the first to know and kept it from Brenda until Sat Morning.

Red..., the remark is (if I may speak for others) a joke, a reference to the idea that in general DEMOCRATS are hard-headed, can't see the forest for the trees, gun-grabbing, welfare soaking, whiners that want to throw away the constitution and our system of JUSTICE and HANG DW (or any other perp) without DUE PROCESS OF LAW.

Now, I am sure Democrats have their version of the way they see Republicans.

You are on a 'REPUBLICAN CONSERVATIVE' website and so a reference like this is pretty much obvious and easy to make you when go back and read that POST.

Somewhere on these threads, I read that Westerfield is a staunch Republican. Ya think Nancy Grace is a staunch Democrat? Didn't she make a comment the other day about finally sending a white man to the electric chair?

She seems to be intent on smearing Westerfield, even if it means lying about evidence repeatedly on national television. Do the ends justify the means? I've got a problem with that. Why the need to make up stuff if this case is so strong? Unfortunately, I've seen some of her statements repeated here as fact. (example - "He steam cleaned the entire motorhome").

For Danielle - may the truth be known and her murderer brought to justice.

Didn't Danielle eat pizza and write in her journal Friday night? I thought her brothers said this to detectives.

Gee, I don't remember it being in the testimony.

If they said it to detectives, it wouldn't be under oath. If DADDY told them to say it, would they?

You could be right. I won't argue that they didn't TELL that to the detectives.

Damon STATED that Danielle sat at the table and read A BOOK (same page) for 4 hours. He also stated that Danielle READ to the BOYS. (When pigs fly.)

He or Brenda said she WROTE in her journal (for 4 hours, right). Maybe 2 hours. Let's see, 8:30 until 10:30. Makes sense in the CONCOCT A STORY deal that DAMON probably got himself into. Brenda left for the Bar at 830 and Damon put them to bed until 1030. He and the boys played video games and Danielle SAT THERE for 2 hours, not moving. YEP. I believe that . (when pigs fly, again)

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2nd Bug Expert Bolsters Westerfield Defense

Expert Says Fly Infestations Show When Danielle's Body Was Dumped