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Hair Like Danielle's Found In Westerfield Bed Sheets

Prosecution To Finish Case This Week

POSTED: 7:44 a.m. PDT June 24, 2002
UPDATED: 12:03 p.m. PDT June 24, 2002

A San Diego police criminalist said hairs similar to Danielle van Dam's were found in the bed sheets of David Westerfield.

Danielle van Dam, David Westerfield
WESTERFIELD TRIAL
DANIELLE VAN DAM 1994-2002

Watch LIVE Coverage Of Trial @ 1:30 p.m.

Criminalist Tanya DuLaney (pictured, right) said a blonde hair similar to Danielle's was found in a bottom sheet from Westerfield's bed and two similar hairs were found on the top sheet.

Tanya DuLaney

Prosecutors haven't yet revealed whether a DNA or other type of analysis has confirmed whether it was in fact Danielle's hair.

DuLaney's testimony comes on the 12th day of testimony in the trial of Westerfield, who is accused of kidnapping and killing the 7-year-old girl in February.

Prosecutors are expected to wrap up their case by the end of this week by presenting what they say are images of child pornography taken from the defendant's home computer.

Authorities believe the pornography points to the motive for the abduction and killing.

Last week, DNA experts testified that hair and blood found in the defendant's motor home and blood found on his jacket belonged to the victim.

San Diego police forensic biologist Annette Peer testified that she was able to obtain Danielle's DNA from a pair of her underwear found in her bedroom and later from a rib bone after the child's body was recovered.

She testified that DNA taken from a blood stain on the floor of Westerfield's motor home matched DNA taken from a blood stain on a green jacket belonging to the defendant.

Police criminalist Sean Soriano testified that he found four stains on the green and blue jacket, which Westerfield took to the dry cleaners Feb. 4.

Three stains tested positive for the presumptive presence of blood, the criminalist testified. They were on the front right middle, the front right shoulder and the neck portion of the jacket, he said.

The portions of the jacket where the stains were found were then cut out, packaged and sent to a lab for further DNA testing, Soriano said. He testified that he also found blood stains on a blanket and a bean-bag chair from the victim's room.

The criminalist said he also removed two long blond hairs from inside boxer shorts seized from Westerfield's laundry room.

Under cross-examination by Feldman, Soriano said he didn't find any semen on bedding seized from Westerfield's residence or motor home.


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