Westerfield Trial Close To Wrapping Up

SAN DIEGO -- Jurors in the trial of accused child killer David Westerfield will hear about 30 minutes of instructions on the law before closing arguments commence next week.

WESTERFIELD TRIAL Judge William Mudd Issues Death Penalty Sentence Hear Jury's Death Penalty Recommendation Watch The Jury's Verdict Being Read Share Your Thoughts DANIELLE VAN DAM 1994-2002 Watch Danielle Video Montage E-mail: daniellevandam @yahoo.com Send mail to: P.O. Box 501515 San Diego, 92150

San Diego Superior Court Judge William Mudd also told defense attorney Steven Feldman Friday that he didn't intend to sequester the jury during deliberations.

The judge spent the morning finalizing jury instructions that will be given in the nationally watched trial.

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Much Debate Over Jury Instructions

Westerfield, 50, is charged with kidnapping, murder and a special circumstance allegation that the killing of 7-year-old Danielle van Dam happened during a kidnapping.

The former Sabre Springs resident also faces a misdemeanor charge of possession of child pornography.

Danielle's mother discovered her missing from her bed the morning of Feb. 2. Police immediately focused on Westerfield, a neighbor who was put under surveillance beginning Feb. 5. He was arrested Feb. 22.

The second-grader's body was found Feb. 27 by volunteers searchers near Dehesa, in San Diego's East County.

The defense contends Westerfield couldn't have killed the child because bug evidence indicates her body was dumped at the site at a time when police were watching the defendant. But prosecutors say the defendant could have stuffed the victim in a container, then disposed of her partially mummified body immediately or days later.

If the jury finds Westerfield guilty, it will be asked to recommend the death penalty or life in prison without the possibility of parole.

Defense attorney Steven Feldman told the judge that he may call one final witness -- believed to be a forensic anthropologist -- on Tuesday.

If the witness is called to the stand, closing arguments will be delivered Wednesday morning. If not, Mudd will instruct the jury on the law, and the prosecution will start its closing argument on Tuesday.

Jury services manager Neal Methvin testified that 5,625 summons were sent out in an effort to get jurors for the Westerfield case.

He said 611 people appeared at the San Diego Hall of Justice on May 17, when there were no other trials that needed jurors.

Of those 611, 140 people had their jury duty postponed and 207 out of the remaining 471 were excused for hardship, Methvin said.

The 12 jurors and six alternates were selected from a pool of 263 citizens, Methvin said.

Feldman told the judge earlier that he wasn't sure the jury was picked from a cross-section of the community and wanted to explore that as a possible appeal issue.

Mudd said the prosecution and the defense will each be given four additional seats in the courtroom during closing arguments.

Brenda and Damon van Dam will be allowed to bring in one support person, the judge ruled.

Three seats will be made available to immediate family members of the defendant, leaving 10 seats for the media and 10 seats for the public.

Feldman told the judge that he had been told that Brenda van Dam had called the mother of 5-year-old kidnap-murder victim Samantha Runnion, who was killed last month.

The attorney also commented on a new statewide alert system that illuminated signs on freeways in San Diego and throughout California about the plight of two teenage girls kidnapped in the Lancaster area.

Mudd said he had seen similar signs alerting the public to a missing baby who was inside a vehicle that a car thief took in San Ysidro Thursday.

Throughout the trial, Mudd has admonished the jury to stay away from publicity on the Westerfield case and related cases.

"There's a whole lot of things out there, but I'll keep an open mind," the judge said.