STILL SHOT FROM
VIDEO
|
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STANDING BY
FOR DECISION
Tapes Of
Child Shown
In
Suzanne DeWalt Trial
Jury
Decides Fate Today
SAL
STAFF |
Developing
Click
for Herald-Zeitung Coverage.
SAL DEWALT SERIES
PART
1 / PART
2 / PART
3 / PART
4
Discretion Advised
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DEWALT
CHILD SUBPOENAED
Son Jeremy
Expected To Testify
In Mom's
Defense
Alleged
Sex-Abuser Dad Admits Ducking FBI
Interview And
Never Met Florida Cops
RG GRIFFING, SAL Commentary |
(Editor's Note: Since
this story was published the decision was made not to
put the child on the stand. )
Suzanne
DeWalt's son, Jeremy, has been subpoenaed by her
legal team in the punishment phase of the socalled
"gentle kidnapper" case; and the child's
father, Navy pilot Mike DeWalt, has now admitted that
he did not fully cooperate with investigators over
allegations that he and two relatives sexually abused
the boy on a secret Florida trip.
The
testimony came Wednesday and included much evidence
that was kept from the jury during Suzanne's criminal
trial on aggravated kidnapping.
Suzanne
faces a possible 99-year sentence. She put on no
defense, opting to wait for the jury to hear evidence
that was kept from them during the first phase of the
trial.
Sources
have told the Lightning that Suzanne turned down a
plea bargain which included probation.
As
reported by the Lightning, Comal District Attorney
Dib Waldrip hid information from the defense about a
recent interview with an FBI agent who investigated
the DeWalt case. Nancy Fisher indicated she thought
the allegations were true, but a planned grand jury
presentation was foiled by the Navy. (See previous
stories below.)
* * *
Dad
Mike DeWalt and DA Waldrip had led the jury to
believe that DeWalt was cleared of charges in five
different investigations, but Suzanne's attorneys
forced him to admit that he had never agreed to a
rquested FBI interview, and never actually met with
Florida cops in the jurisdiction named in the
allegations.
*
* *
In
what some court observers called a "blow"
to the prosecution, presiding judge Dan Steel
disallowed subpoenas for the other two family members
named in the allegations.
It
is an obvious split with Mike DeWalt the two cousins
hired an attorney and successfully fought the DA's
subpoenas.
*
* *
Other
perceived victories for the defense on Wednesday
included the reiteration by Mike Dewalt that he
secretly took his son to Florida. Though Dad DeWalt
insisted it was to stop the "incessant"
phone calls from Suzanne, his own phone records
showed only one call per day.
When
asked about lying to his ex-wife about Jeremy's
location, DeWalt told the court it was "probably
not the right thing to do.”
More
to follow.
-
Developing -
* * *
- Previous Story -
6-21-2006
DEWALT
TRIAL
SHE'S 'GUILTY AS CHARGED'
US Navy, FBI, Comal County On
The Hot Spot
In DeWalt Case; Punishment
Phase Underway
RG Griffing, SAL
Commentary
Suzanne DeWalt has been found
guilty of the charge "aggravated
kidnapping" by a jury of her peers.
It was no surprise to those
following the case, though many wished otherwise.
Suzanne has admitted, since a
letter published in the Lightning and written in
2002, that she took her child to Mexico to protect
him, and she outlined why she did this, in graphic
detail. (Click
for letter.)
She knowingly broke the law.
Her parents were jailed for aiding her. Suzanne is
now back in Comal County jail.
A new trial phase is underway
to see what penalty Justice will demand. It could be
99 years. She knew from the start that she was
probably ruining the rest of her life.
* * *
I wouldn't care much for this
woman as a mom, if she hadn't done what she did.
But she did it for her child,
and for that, I greatly admire her.
Here is an interview with her,
shortly after her capture.
(Click
for excerpt from the recorded interview. MP3 player
required.)
Transcript:
I would ask
him to trust in God..that..uh...I know God's got
a plan...in all of this...and...uh not...not to
lose his faith...and to know that his Mommy is
here...and I love him... and I'm doing everything
I can to help him ...(sobbing) and to be
strong...
* * *
Here are some more reasons I
have sympathy for this gentle kidnapper.
Suzanne was prepared and eager
to testify in front of the Comal jury, but new
developments made that impossible, and the court
ruled out evidence that bolstered her case. She
presented no defense.
The Lightning has learned that
Suzanne turned down a plea agreement which included
probation. She wanted the trial.
The Lightning has learned that
the prosecuting DA, Dib Waldrip, hid important
evidence from the defense. Withering evidence.
The Lightning has learned that
an FBI agent, Nancy Fisher, was convinced of the
allegations against Mike DeWalt, and was days away
from taking a case to the grand jury. Her
investigation was halted by members of the US Navy.
Mike DeWalt is a Naval reservist pilot, and his
family has an illustrious and powerful presence with
the Navy.
Nancy Fisher has since retired
from the FBI.
The Lightning has obtained a
video of the boy as he implicates his father and
other relatives in sexual abuse, as interviewed by a
recognized expert. Other videos have also come to the
Lightning's attention.
In coming days you will see
here in the Lightning exactly
what was left out. You judge if it would have made a
difference.
Hopefully the jury will see
some of these things in court, as this phase of the
trial is more open to such evidence.
* * *
To those who know members of
the Comal jury, do not direct
them to this page, as it might alter their
conceptions. They are the final arbitors of this
case, and with any luck and the will of God, they
will come to the proper conclusion on their own.
More to follow.
- Developing -
* * *
Previous Stories
06-20-2004
   |
|
DEWALT KIDNAP
CASE SHOCKER
Comal DA Withheld
Key Evidence In Kidnap Case
Defense Rests
Without Witnesses
Government
Child-Crime Investigator
Believed Boy Was
Abused By Father,
But Jury Has Been
Kept In The Dark
RG
Griffing, SAL Commentary |
As word of her fate is awaited
by accused kidnapper Suzanne DeWalt, machinations
within the Comal Criminal Courts have put an ugly
stench on the proceedings.
Comal County District Attorney
Dib Waldrip withheld at least one key piece of
evidence in the Suzanne DeWalt kidnapping case --
information which would have bolstered the Comal
mom's contention that she snatched her own son
following an adverse custody case, and fled with him
to Mexico to "protect him," the Lightning
has learned.
In open court Mike DeWalt, a
Navy pilot, denied child abuse, but admitted that,
given the circumstances, Suzanne DeWalt may have been
justified in fearing for her 5-year-old son. (See
story below.)
Now, according to one
government child-crime investigator, it has been
revealed that the case was just days away from going
to a grand jury when Naval officials interceded and
halted the investigation. The investigator held the
belief that Mike DeWalt had indeed molested his own
son, and said so in an interview with DA Waldrip less
that two months ago, sources close to the DA confirm
to the Lightning.
Waldrip kept the evidence
secret. The jury is unaware of this.
* * *
There is no doubt Suzanne
DeWalt abscounded with the child. She has admitted as
much in a letter published in the Lightning. (Click for letter.)
But was her motivation
justified?
Much evidence points in that
direction, but the Comal jury hasn't seen that
material.
Aquital seems unlikely. The
jury will let us know, very shortly.
But given the information
denied the light of inquiry during this trial, we
shall see what the jurors would
have done, had they only known.
More to follow.
- Developing -
* * *
- Previous Story -
6-16-2006
 |
|
DAD'S
ADMISSIONS HELP DEFENSE
Kidnap
Case Going Sour?
Husband
Of Accused Agrees
Ex-Wife
May Have Had Reason To
Be
Concerned For Her 5-Year-Old
RG Griffing, SAL Commentary
|
Comal County Criminal District
Attorney Dib Waldrip was visibly agitated, redfaced
and angry as he rested the State's case Friday
against defiant mom Suzanne DeWalt .
He was upset because his star
witness, the father of alleged kidnapping victim
Jeremy DeWalt, admitted to the jury that his ex-wife
may have had good reason to flee with her son.
Allegations
of sexual abuse by Michael DeWalt had been kept from
the Comal jury in this high profile case, but defense
attorneys were able to pull strong information from
the Naval Reserve officer which bolstered his
ex-wife's contention that she feared for her son's
safety.
Defense
Attorney Phil Watkins asked Michael DeWalt perhaps
the most important question raised in the trial, so
far.
Q:
"But from her point of view, as a protective
mother...if the child, hypothetically,
represented these things to her, wouldn't
she be very concerned about her child's physical
well-being?" (Emphasis
added)
A:
"Yes, she would have."
* * *
Suzanne
DeWalt has maintained from the start that she had
grave concerns for her then 5-year-old when she fled
with him to Mexico after losing a custody battle in
2002.
That
she took the child illegally has never been disputed
by her.
Her
parents were jailed for helping her.
In
a letter written in 2002, and later forwarded to the
Lightning, Suzanne DeWalt detailed her allegations of
sexual abuse. (Click for
letter. Discretion is strongly advised.)
The
incidents described were claimed to have taken place
on a secret trip to Florida. Michael DeWalt admitted
that he lied to the child's mother at the time,
telling her that Jeremy was at his grandparents’
Virginia home.
Michael
DeWalt acknowledged the deception in front of the
jury, and told the court it was a
"mistake."
*
* *
What
the jury has not seen are video recordings of the
child telling a psycologist of the abuse he says he
underwent at the hands of his father and two
relatives on that Florida trip.
The
Lightning has obtained these recordings, and is
considering publishing portions. They are very
graphic.
These
digital documents were kept from the jury during
Suzanne's custody trial, and have so far been barred
from her current case.
*
* *
Michael
DeWalt was investigated by five different agencies,
but has never been charged.
*
* *
Though
defense attorney Watkins declined an interview with
the Lightning, he did confirm that he expects Suzanne
DeWalt to testify today, when the defense begins its
case. (Editor's note: Since this story Suzanne and
her lawyers chose not to put on a defense.)
Meanwhile,
courtroom sources have told the Lightning that a plea
bargain was offered and rejected. That bargain would
have included probation.
Suzanne
DeWalt faces 5-99 years in prison, and a $10,000 fine
Developing.
More
to follow.
Archives
below.
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