EXPERT LINKS PORN TO WESTERFIELD'S SON!: (Feldman's Message To "The Damon"; Don't Leave Town!)

KNSD NBC ^ | July 3, 2002 | KNBC

[FresnoDA]

Expert Links Porn Images To Westerfield's Son

Defense Hopes To Show Child Porn Wasn't Downloaded By Defendant

 

POSTED: 12:15 p.m. PDT July 3, 2002

UPDATED: 2:55 p.m. PDT July 3, 2002

 

SAN DIEGO -- A computer expert hired by David Westerfield's defense team said that at least some of the pornography seized from his home was downloaded by the defendant's son.

---

Marcus Lawson (pictured, right), president of Global CompuSearch of Spokane, Wash., testified Wednesday that he found two photographs of naked women and Japanese "anime" computer animations on the hard drive of a Gateway computer in an upstairs bedroom used by Westerfield's 18-year-old son, David Neal Westerfield. The former Customs Service agent said that a detailed analysis of the files showed the pornography was downloaded at about the same time someone was accessing an email account belonging to the younger Westerfield.

David A. Westerfield, 50, is charged with kidnapping and killing 7-year-old Danielle van Dam. He is also charged with misdemeanor possession of child pornography. Prosecutors have said the 80 or so images of child pornography taken from Westerfield's home indicate sexual interest in children.Defense attorneys are trying to show that the defendant is not responsible for the pornographic images -- including those of young children -- found on his computer equipment.

David A. Westerfield, a 50-year-old self-employed design engineer, is on trial for the kidnapping and murder of 7-year-old Danielle van Dam.

Lawson told jurors that he examined copies of hard drives, zip disks and compact disks made by police and took numerous screen captures -- essentially photographs of what came up on the computer monitor at a given time.

Defense attorney Steven Feldman asked Lawson if there was a theme to the animations.

"A considerable number of the screen prints showed bondage -- where women were tied in ropes," Lawson said.

A screen print of an e-mail to a DNWesthotmail.com, as quoted by Lawson, said: "Thanks for joining anime.com."

Lawson also confirmed screen prints the defense entered into evidence last week, that a computer in the office of Westerfield's house was used to access pornography on Feb. 4 at 4:47 p.m., when the defendant was busy with detectives.

Feldman mentioned last week's suggestion that the clock on the computer may have been doctored.

"Did you see any evidence that that happened on any of the computers you examined?" Feldman asked.

"No, I did not," Lawson answered. He said there's usually signs when a clock has been tampered with, such as files being accessed before they were created. Nothing like that was apparent on Westerfield's computers, he said.

Tuesday, San Diego police Detective Johnny Keene testified that he collected Westerfield from his Sabre Springs home that Monday around 3:40 p.m. and took him to the Northeastern substation in Rancho Penasquitos. The defendant remained there until approximately 11:30 p.m.

[MizSterious]

I wish I lived closer to the SD courthouse. I'd love to do some freeping there. Sample signs: "What about the shell casing?", "Let's hear from Barbara", "Who belongs to the unID'd prints?"

LOL--and Jaded could come with her "Free Ninja Dave" poster!

[pinz-n-needlez]

So. Where is it? Not at DW's house. Not in his motorhome. Maybe in Danielle's bedroom, but they're blaming that on Layla. Dollars to donuts the carpet wasn't tested.

Ding, ding, ding! I think we have a winner. All that Layla testimony didn't make sense to me. Now I see. Layla provides a smokescreen for perhaps a lot of damning evidence. It seemed so silly to spend time at a murder trial talking about a poorly housebroken dog (guess BVD didn't have time for her, either), but not if that dog becomes a convenient patsy for a coverup.

Makes the mysterious dog bed that much more important, too.

Thanks for all the solid thinking you've put into this.

[pinz-n-needlez]

What do we know about Halfman? Was she a friend of all of theirs? Is she a member of the CB Club? Was she sent to keep the lid on revelations of hanky panky further up at SDPD? Did she eat pizza?

She has been very visible publically to be an undercover connection, hasn't she? But then this is a group who hope to get the death penalty for an unrolled hose and whiter whites! lol

[Freedom2specul8]

Yes, that was a good point someone brought up on FR as well. Can't remember who it was. DW could have purchased a $20 plastic fitted mattress protector from walmart.. wrapped her up...etc.. disposed of it, burned it somewhere..

[MizSterious]

But, according to most theories, this was a crime of opportunity. Most "hang'em now" posters have said he got drunk, blacked out and stole her from her room, etc. etc.--this would have required a good deal of premeditation, going out and buying plastic for the bed, and so on. Sorry. Doesn't fly.

[MizSterious]

In one of the articles, it was mentioned that she was a van Dam "family friend." We also know she's retired LE (because of a job related injury) and worked as go-between for the van Dams, LE and media during the month of February.

[Freedom2specul8]

Theories are educated guesses based on known evidence. He did not have a blood alcohol test that night so we really don't know how drunk he was. He could have for sure premeditated because one theory was that he was stalking danielle for a long time.

[MizSterious]

Well, you can't have it both ways. He can't have been drunk and blacked out and have planned this days or weeks in advance at the same time. It would have been one or the other, but not both.

Too many people want to have it both ways, so long as the outcome is DW gets the death penalty. If he did it, they need to prove it by more than smoke and mirrors. There are just too many holes in this case--and too few people showing concern over them.

[spectre]

Hi dem...We're back from our mini vacation. The nice sheriff in a podunk town in Arkansas made sure we had a safe one...(Can you say "speed trap"..) he gave Mr. Spectre a speeding ticket and we were little angels on the road after that. EVERYONE was passing us, because we were finally doing the speed limit...go figure.

Just be careful...have fun!

sw

[Freedom2specul8]

Obviously he couldn't have known weeks in advance what the vd's were going to do on that particular friday night. But he simply could have found an opportunity....from BVD herself...and decided to himself "hey, maybe I can ...", went out, bought the cover and sat in wait. Or maybe he had it for a long time, waiting for the right moment..if he ever had the chance. (or his son??)

No, it's not that people want to have it both ways. No one wants an innocent man convicted either..There again, prayer to God to prevent or stop that from happening! There are missing pieces to the puzzle, and the speculation, filling in the blanks...is imagining what the puzzle pieces are that are missing..and doing that is based on the rest of the puzzle pieces that are known. For example, The theory about the parents doing it would have a bit more validity if there were no blood and fibers in the MH, and dw's behaviour wasn't so different to the dry cleaner clerk ..that is based on known evidence.

I understand some of your alls theories as well...like danielle sneaking in the MH and bled a few drops. At this point, are we to assume that she went in by herself cuz there are no known playmates that have gone in there???

[pinz-n-needlez]

Thanks.

I remember early descriptions of her role saying that she helped the VDs understand police procedures and ways of doing things. How sweet and innocuous.

But given what we now know about the VDs and how much we know that we don't know (because they've lied/hidden so much), one can't help but think that she may have had a hand in all those fibers and hairs that weren't analyzed and compared, all those hand prints that weren't checked with the database.

And all the places in the MH that weren't dusted for prints. As if someone was told where to check for just the print they needed to nail DW. Kind of like the searchers went to Dehesa Rd. on a 'hunch.' It's amazing how the hunches just seem to pin one more piece of evidence on DW.

Could Halfman been coordinating 'leads' between the VDs and the SDPD? She would know how to word an interview to justify getting a Search Warrant......

Just wild speculation on my part.

[spectre]

The "plastic" for the bed, suggests premeditation. Which was it...drunk impulse or premeditation? DW would have NEVER slept with a plastic mattress cover. He was to hot-blooded and perspired easily..(JMO).. Ever try to sleep on one of those? Talk about "sweating"...geeze.

I think DW was only trying to protect his son from the publicity concerning the kids porno exploration, because he never, ever dreamed it would go this far when he said it was HIS porno.

DW was acting like a father, sheltering his own son, but didn't know it was going to be the entire MOTIVE in a case against him.

sw

[Doc Savage]

Forget the Kimchee "He bought a mattress pad" dream, all you have to do is ask one simple question of yourself. You have just killed a small child. You roam around with her in your MH in the wilds of California. So why do you want the body found??

Remember, the whole purpose of focusing on his wilderness sojourn is to suggest that he did so to escape detection and dump her body somewhere. Nice choice of location!!!!!!!!!!!!

Why would DW (if he had killed her and carted her around) be concerned that someone find her remains????

If I had killed her, I assure you she would have been buried very deep in the most remote place I could find. I would never want the chance for the police or anyone to discover the body.

But old DW, he doesn't care. You see he has a turn of heart. He wants to now make sure that Busty Brenda and the Demon Seed have the chance to bury their child.

No way. Doesn't wash. Any person slightly above brain-dead (and I believe we know who that is) knows (just from watching television) that forensics can uncover a multitude of clues from any crime site.

DW was an intelligent person. He would have had to have known that by dumping the body where someone would eventually stumble across it he was inviting trouble.

Only two people would have benefited from her being found. Wonder who those two might be.....................?????????

[Freedom2specul8]

They're not pads...they're cheao thin fitted plastic sheets and um, are we trying to suppress theories and opinions now? Surely not..

[Freedom2specul8]

cheao = cheap

[Lucky]

If Danielle was a sleepwalker, was there a gate at the top of the stairs so she won't fall down them at night? If not, maybe she wasn't a sleepwalker. Also, wasn't it the masterbedroom where Damon shampooed the carpet because of the dog. Maybe it wasn't the dog that peed there, maybe it was Danielle when she died???

[spectre]

What do some people think DW did? Walk into the local 7/24 hour Wal-mart Super Center and say to himself "Hey, I think I'll buy a Mattress Pad"...oh yeah..I can just picture that!

sw

[pinz-n-needlez]

Great logic.

And if you had a body that needed to be secretly buried, would you first drive it around half of known creation in the most ostentatious vehicle ever devised by man??????

[Freedom2specul8]

If this wasn't a spur of the moment abduction...if he'd been stalking and waiting for the opportunity he indeed COULD HAVE purchased the thin cheap fitted mattress cover days or weeks in advance... that's just speculation..

[Freedom2specul8]

In addition, wrt:burying in a shallow grave vs dumping like trash along the roadside..the massive search and rescue teams could have surpassed his expectations ...