SAN DIEGO -- David Westerfield began crying and shaking when detectives who drove with him to the desert questioned him about a missing 7-year-old girl, according to previously sealed transcripts released Monday.

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

The information came to light as 1,600 pages of sealed transcripts of closed-door hearings were made public.

At one point in the documents, Westerfield's attorney, Steven Feldman, refers to Westerfield's statements to police as "confessions," 10News reported.

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In arguing to have the "confessions" restricted from the jury, Feldman is corrected by his fellow attorney, and reminded that Westerfield had issued "statements, not confessions." At which point Feldman changes his terminology.

The statements of confessions that Feldman was talking about are believed to be those made during a Feb. 5, 2001, interview by police. In that interview, Westerfield told police that his life was "over," and asked one of the detectives to leave him alone with a gun.

Westerfield, was convicted and sentenced to death for the kidnapping and killing last year of Danielle van Dam, who turned up missing from her bed the morning of Feb. 2.

In the documents, Westerfield asks San Diego police detectives Mark Keyser and Michael Ott for a gun to end his life.

"Give me what I want and I'll give you what you want," Westerfield told the detectives.

Ott and Keyser told Westerfield if he should decide to commit suicide, to please leave a note telling them where the girl was. The detectives asked Westerfield what he thought happened to the Sabre Springs second-grader.

He told them he had a vision that he saw a figure dressed in black go into the van Dam home, scoop up Danielle, then take her out of the residence.

When Westerfield was arrested Feb. 22, he told Ott and Keyser, "Let me know when you've found the girl," according to the unsealed documents.

Ott and Keyser then pressed Westerfield to tell them where Danielle was and he responded, "I can't do that. My attorneys have told me not to talk any more."

Westerfield told police he left his Sabre Springs home in his motor home the morning Danielle disappeared and was gone all that weekend. He said he drove to the Silver Strand in Coronado, then to Glamis in Imperial County, then back to the Silver Strand before returning home on Monday, Feb. 4.

Westerfield then went with Ott and Keyser to retrace his 550-mile journey, according to the court documents.

Also released was information that Westerfield hired Feldman after the detectives gave him a phone book and pointed to the noted lawyer's name.

Superior Court Judge William Mudd has said he will release all the material from the trial, with the exception of sidebar hearings.

"I have no idea how many of them there are, what was talked about, or anything else," Mudd said of the sidebar hearings. "I'm simply not going to do it ... It goes too far."