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.

"Again, the interview DW gave to Det. Redden has been entered into evidence. I don't know why he wanted to convey to the police that he cleaned the MH, but he did. "

This is true, and this is why I stated "a serious cleaning ". Remember the reports of the MH being washed down with bleach, etc? None of it turned out to be true.

What did DW mean by "cleaned"? Removing the bedding and comforters? Dumping the holding tank and sloshing out the toilet? IMO, it's an ambiguous statement at best, so who knows what he might have meant by it?

I felt there was more evidence and testimony to indicate that a "serious" cleaning was not performed, but then that's JMO.

>>>He was honest and told them the truth; not what they wanted to hear.<<<

I assume he told them his OPINION. It seems like in the field of forensic entomology the "truth" about certain conclusions is a little shaky. Interesting article I just read....

>>>But more than other forensic sciences like DNA analysis, forensic entomology eschews straightforward analysis. For analysis concerning time of death — by far the most common task for entomologists in criminal cases — there are no mathematical formulas, no easy calculations. Accuracy depends on the scientist's ability to determine how a host of variables at the crime scene, including temperature, precipitation, time of day, humidity and geography, affected insect life. "If you are not a very imaginative person as a scientist, you won't go far," said K.C. Kim, a Penn State professor and certified forensic entomologist. The subjectivity of the field makes for what another forensic entomologist, Jason Byrd of Virginia Commonwealth University, calls "showdowns" — professional disputes over results. According to Byrd, haggling over conclusions has become increasingly common in the last three or four years as lawyers have become more familiar with the evidence and how to attack its credibility.<<<

Also from the same article...Could be the ticket right here.

>>>Dusek quizzed Faulkner about the impact of some sort of shroud in the Westerfield case. There is no evidence Danielle's body was wrapped in a blanket, but the prosecutor got Faulkner to admit that a covering, perhaps later dragged away by animals, might have skewed his results. <<<

I have a feeling that the jury will decide this case on other things other than bug experts battling each other over easily "skewed" results.

What could be in video?

Well I don't live on the Westcoast. I get national news...I remember when the story broke. I remember seeing pictures of Dehesa site through the media, when her body was found. There wasn't much to be seen, just the police cars, and LE standing off the side of the road. The media was held back from the scene, while LE were in the process of collecting and identifing her remains.

Somehow, I don't think it's going to be about Dehesa road. I think that Feldman will use the news media to show how LE contaminated the MH. I saw lots of national medial images of LE walking around the areas belonging to DW. Maybe Feldman can show them in the same outfits 2 days in a row, or how they did not wear protective shoe coverings, etc.

This could be how he could explain DNA, etc.. in the minds of the jury.....

Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.

2nd Bug Expert Bolsters Westerfield Defense

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