by Robert Scott
Thirty-one-year-old Chris Darden, a helicopter pilot, got hooked on the case when he volunteered to search by helicopter for Ivan and Annette Stineman. He later said, “I lost some faith in humanity when I listened to the details of the Helzer brothers’ grisly crime spree. Now I don’t put anything past anyone. This wasn’t a Hollywood story. It happened and it happened in Concord!”
Forty-four-year-old Juley Salkeld also became a court observer. She was a law student who planned to be a prosecutor one day. She said, “All the phases of this case and trial are fascinating.”
In time, these court observers would even be written about in the Contra Costa Times. The headlines stated: COURT WATCHERS PLAY UP THE PART.
Reporter Matt Krupnick wrote, “Like a Broadway musical, the Justin Helzer murder trial has bit players who are unheard but know their cues intimately. Chris Darden sits in the middle of the back row and always leans forward to keep his injured back from hurting. Mabel and Ray Carberry usually sit somewhere in the third row, with Mabel scribbling notes and sketches on a bound notebook. Juley Salkeld sometimes arrives late, but almost never misses a day.”
If ancient Greek drama had a chorus, the court observers in the Justin Helzer trial were a modern equivalent. Victims’ family members, bailiffs and even Judge O’Malley noted when they skipped a day, and said that they missed their presence.
On the last day of April 2004, the trial of California v. Justin Alan Helzer began. Judge Mary Ann O’Malley presided in a black robe. Yet not even the austere robe could hide her charming grace and good looks. At one point, Chris Darden whispered to Ray, “She looks like Princess Diana.”
Ray, who is Irish, scoffed at the “English Rose” allusion, but admitted that “Judge Mary is very sweet and friendly.” Then he noted that her last name was O’-Malley, after all.
Judge O’Malley was more than just a figurehead or a pretty face, however. She had a keen intellect and incisive understanding of the law. She also had a firm grasp of courtroom dynamics. On several occasions, she thanked the jury for being so attentive and focused. She won them over by her frank appraisal of different situations and her good humor during breaks. She even led them in stretching exercises during breaks, knowing how tedious it can be to sit hour after hour, listening to sometimes boring testimony.
Mabel Carberry said, “The time it took to get qualified jurors, and all the work, I credit Judge Mary Ann O’Malley for staying the course. She called the shots, gave the jurors exercise time on the spur of the moment and allowed beverages in the courtroom. She was outstanding, personable and lovely.”
The formal counts against Justin were so numerous, it took nearly a half hour for the court clerk, Tom Moyer to read them. They ranged from Count 1 to Count 18, with thirty-nine overt acts tacked on.
Deputy DA Harold Jewett got things rolling by laying out the entire case in chronological order, starting with the lives of Ivan and Annette Stineman. He delved into their marriage, the birth of daughters Nancy and Judy, and Ivan’s taking on Taylor Helzer as his financial adviser. He spoke of Taylor befriending the Stinemans, and even taking them on a white-water raft trip. He spoke of Taylor’s betrayal of their trust. He also spoke of Justin’s overwhelming admiration of Taylor.
Jewett spoke of Taylor’s feigned mental illness at Dean Witter, his life with Keri Furman, raves, drugs and his growing ambitions. Impact America was detailed, the Children of Thunder, and Dawn and Selina as well. Jewett spoke at length about the murderous week of July 30 to August 7, 2000, and the depositing of body bags in the Delta. He talked about how Justin followed almost all of Taylor’s orders, no matter how murderous, or how bizarre. By the time Jewett was through, his voice had reached a crescendo and three hours had elapsed. Still, he’d only scratched the surface of the incredible events perpetrated by Taylor, Justin and Dawn.
By contrast, Justin’s main defense attorney, Daniel Cook, was soft-spoken. In looks and style, there was a touch of Bobby Kennedy in him. He told the jurors, “Please keep your minds open. Mr. Jewett laid out a good road map. But we need more than road maps. To understand the truth, we have to look at why the case is about a test of faith. It’s about a test of faith [for Justin] in his brother. That brother spoke as if he was a prophet of God.”
Cook spoke of Taylor’s overwhelming influence on Justin. “Justin wanted to do good. But Justin was a nerd. He was slow and he had no self-confidence. He would do what his mother wanted, but it was never enough.
“Taylor, on the other hand, could light up a room. He could charm your socks off. He felt he was always right. He tolerated no dissension. Taylor preyed on people. He was powerful and skillful. He could quote scripture. He always made sure his circle of people were under his control.
“The evidence will show that Justin was not a schemer, a planner or a criminal. Justin was a follower who worshiped Taylor. And Taylor knew that Justin would do anything he asked.
“When Justin grew up, he was straight as an arrow. He never drank a beer, smoked a cigarette or masturbated. He couldn’t get a date, couldn’t hold a job, and he was not good at school. He eventually got a two-year degree. He also went on a two-year mission for the LDS Church. This was considered good by his community. He achieved something. He became a man.
“But Taylor said the Church had it all wrong.”
Cook told of Taylor and everyone in his orbit going to Impact and Harmony. Cook said, “Harmony stripped away Justin’s last layer of defense. From then on, Justin jumped when Taylor said to jump.”
Then Cook put a hand over his heart and said, “We have to find the truth. A man will be here every day in this court. He is not here today, but he is powerful. A skillful manipulator who consumed everyone around him. Justin is not that man. The man is Taylor.”
Opening arguments lasted until 2:24 P.M. on the first day of court. At that point, Jewett told Judge O’Malley that there was a matter he needed to address. The jury was led out of the courtroom into the hallway by bailiff Mike Harkelroad.
When they were gone, Jewett said, “I got a voice mail message during the lunch hour.”
At that point, Judge O’Malley said, “I want this in camera (in private).”
As she, Jewett and Cook started for the judge’s chambers, an AP reporter suddenly stood up and declared, “I object in the name of freedom of the press!”
Everyone was momentarily stunned, including Judge O’Malley. She frowned at the female reporter but did not respond. Judge O’Malley and the others went into chambers.
On their return into court, O’Malley said, “Now on the record, I will not have any outbursts in my court! If you do, you will be removed.”
Confrontations with this reporter were far from over, however. During a break, she was out in the hallway, talking to her editor on a cell phone. Unfortunately for her, she was speaking in the presence of two jurors about the trial. The jurors were so upset about this, they both complained to the bailiff about it. When the bailiff brought this to Judge O’Malley’s attention, O’Malley became incensed, after having already given a warning.
When court reconvened, Judge O’Malley said to the reporter, “Explain yourself.”
Reporter: I called my manager.
O’Malley: Why in front of my jurors?
Reporter: This is not my experience. I said, “The judge has gone into closed court. What should I do?”
O’Malley: I don’t want my jurors to hear comments.
Reporter: You don’t want any of us phoning out in the hall?
O’Malley (stern voice): You will not phone in front of the jurors! Maybe a mistrial will happen and, I assure you, not even your manager would want that!
The next trial day, Monday, May 3, 2004, was all business by comparison. Harold Jewett began the long parade of witnesses with people who had known Ivan and Annette Stineman, including their daughter Nancy Hall.
The next set of witnesses were neighbors and people who had seen two strange young men in suits approaching the Stinemans’
door on Sunday, July 30, 2000.
Jewett then questioned Jeanette Carter about Taylor, Justin and Dawn’s life in the Mormon Church and her meeting him on “Murder Mystery Night” at the Singles Third Ward in Walnut Creek.
Jewett’s questioning of Bishop Brett Halversen, of the LDS, delved into the matter of Mormon doctrine and the Helzer brothers’ deviation from them. Halversen had been a Mormon since the age of eight, and he was now sixty-seven years old. He spoke of the foundations of the faith, which according to Mormon doctrine went back to 2200 B.C. centered in the Holy Land of Palestine. Key to the faith was the period from 600 B.C. to 400 A.D that chronicled the history of the Nephites. According to Mormon doctrine, Nephi lived with his family near Jerusalem around 600 B.C. and an epochal event happened when Nephi encountered Laban, who was keeper of the holy records of his people and their covenant with God. Nephi knew that Laban was not the right man to be keeper of the golden tablets that recorded the history.
Laban refused to give over the sacred tablets to Nephi by right of ownership, nor would he sell them to him. Realizing that Laban was drunk and unworthy of the sacred tablets, Nephi used Laban’s own sword to kill him. Then putting on Laban’s clothing, to fool the guards, Nephi secreted the tablets out of their hiding place.
According to Halversen, “Nephi received inspiration from God to do the act. He got an okay from God to kill Laban.”
This was an important concept, not only for Nephi in 600 B.C., but for Taylor Helzer and the Children of Thunder in 2000 A.D. All of these individuals believed they received divine sanction to kill to further a greater good. To have turned their backs on God’s command in their estimation would have been sacrilegious. But whereas Nephi received a divine message from God, according to Halversen, Taylor Helzer did not.
Halversen also spoke of how Nephi and his family traveled from Palestine to the New World of the Americas. Daniel Cook objected to the long narrative of Mormon history and scripture, saying it was irrelevant. He was overruled by Judge O’Malley.
Bishop Halversen then spoke of Nephi and his family in the Americas, and the split between himself and Laman, his brother. Two separate and antagonistic cultures evolved from this split—the Nephites and the Lamanites. The epic of their struggle was eventually written down on golden tablets and became the Book of Mormon. Around 400 A.D., according to Mormon doctrine, the golden tablets were buried beneath a hill in what would later become New York State. It was the hill of Cumorah, near present-day Manchester, New York.
There the golden tablets would rest until discovered by Joseph Smith in the 1820s.
Halversen spoke of the “Latter-Day” portion of Latter-Day Saints as a reference to their belief that they were living in the latter days of the world before Christ’s Second Coming. Halversen said, “Perhaps the Last Days are now. It would be a time of the decline of moral values and moral issues. They would be days of darkness.”
Halversen also delved into the importance of certain numbers in the Mormon faith. The number 3 was important and would lead to Taylor’s insistence on “three core people” in his group. Twelve was also important, because of Jesus’ Twelve Apostles. And 15 was as well, adding the 3 and 12 together. Halversen spoke of the three top leaders in the Mormon Church and their twelve apostles. He said, “An individual can receive a revelation from God for themselves. But only the fifteen can have a revelation from God for the Church as a whole in the world.”
He added, “Spirit is the essence of the Heavenly Father’s will. The Holy Spirit prompts people to do God’s will. All individuals have a spirit. They were spirits before they were born, and become spirits after death.”
The Mormon faith went along with the Book of Revelation in the Bible about the “war in heaven.” The War in Heaven contained such passages as:
He is clad in a robe dripped in blood, and the name of which he is called is the Word of God. And the armies of heaven, arrayed in fine linen, white and pure, followed him on white horses. From his mouth issues a sharp sword with which to smite the nations, and he will rule them with a rod of iron; he will tread the wine press of the fury of the wrath of God the Almighty.
And when the thousand years are ended, Satan will be loosed from his prison and will come out to deceive the nations which are at the four corners of the earth, that is, Gog and Magog, to gather them for battle; their number is like the sands of the sea. And they marched up over the broad earth and surrounded the camp of the saints and the beloved city; but fire came down from heaven and consumed them and the devil who had deceived them was thrown into a lake of fire and brimstone where the beast and the false prophet were, and they will be tormented day and night for ever and ever.
In an interesting comment that could have easily been about Taylor, Halversen said, “Lucifer had charisma to draw his brothers toward evil.”
Bishop Halversen also brought up anecdotes about the importance of seer stones in the Mormon faith. In the Introduction of the Book of Mormon, it is stated:
In due course, the plates were delivered to Joseph Smith who translated them by the gift and power of God.
Smith, according to the Book of Mormon, was able to do so by the use of seer stones:
He (Moroni) said there was a book deposited, written upon gold plates, giving an account of the former inhabitants of this continent.... Also, that there were two stones in silver bows and these stones fastened to a breastplate, constituted what is called Urim and Thummim—deposited with the plates; and the possession and use of these stones were what constituted seers in ancient or former times; and that God had prepared them for the purpose of translating the book.
Taylor also laid great stock in seer stones. Several gem-type stones were found in his bedroom, and one of the staffs in the house held a large crystal in carved eagle’s claws, although this particular one apparently was owned by Dawn Godman.
Halversen’s questioning from Jewett wasn’t all about Mormon doctrine—he was questioned about his personal relationships with Taylor, Justin and Dawn as well. Halversen had been bishop for the Singles Third Ward in the 1990s and knew Dawn very well. He said, “She was a person coming off the street. She had great needs. She had a child part of the time. A boy of five or six. She sought financial assistance and we gave her money for food and shelter. She made progress while a member of the Latter-Day Saints. Her ability to be in society. As a whole person, she was better.”
Then he said, “In the summer of 1999, she wanted money to attend Harmony. It was that one of the twelve apostles of the LDS said to avoid self-awareness programs. So my response was no, for Harmony.”
Around this time, Halversen became aware that Taylor Helzer was starting to attend meetings at the Singles Third Ward along with his brother, Justin. Halversen recalled, “He (Taylor) was unusual. His clothing was atypical. He had a long beard and his appearance was unkempt. He looked like a nineteenth-century preacher.”
Taylor’s parking-lot meetings were disturbing to Halversen, because he seemed to be deviating from Mormon doctrine. Many of the things he had to say made no sense in the prescribed teachings of Mormonism.
Halversen said, “The Latter-Day Saints never recognized Taylor Helzer to receive divine revelations for the Church.”
Halversen had conversations with Justin around this time and discovered that Justin had many ideas that were contradictory to the Mormon faith. By now, Justin had started to believe many precepts encapsulated in Buddhism and Zen philosophy.
Besides all the witnesses on the stand, there were also several court battles about the admissibility of evidence. One such confrontation concerned Taylor’s flight from detectives at the time of his arrest at Saddlewood. Jewett wanted this to be heard by the jury, and Daniel Cook did not.
“I want to contest the events of the flight as inflammatory and had nothing to do with Justin. It is prejudicial and the jury may think that egregious conduct is linked to Justin,” Cook argued.
Judge O’Malley sided with Cook on this matter, a
nd the events about the flight of Taylor was not heard by the jury. On other matters, Cook was not so lucky. He wanted to get in evidence that Justin was nonaggressive at Harmony meetings and stories from all the people who maintained what a “nice guy” he was.
Cook: Justin went to Harmony in 1999. It is not a remote issue.
O’Malley: You are getting in inadmissible evidence.
Cook: He was nonaggressive there.
O’Malley: I don’t want to go there. You’re trying to go back to family occurrences. He’s a nice guy, et cetera. I don’t want any more incidents like that.
There were times that the prosecution and defense also had problems with witnesses testimony. Jeanette Carter seemed to have made statements to Detective Chiabotti in 2000 different from the ones she was making on the stand now. Jewett asked her, “Were you trying to deceive Detective Chiabotti?”
Carter answered, “No.”
Jewett asked, “And are you trying to deceive the people in the jury box today?”
Carter once again replied, “No.”
Other witnesses were very helpful on the witness stand for Jewett, however. Michael Henderson was one of the few people to have been allowed at the house on Saddlewood. He told of Justin showing him the 9mm Beretta semiautomatic that Taylor would use to kill Jenny Villarin and James Gamble. He also told of being invited to dinner at Saddlewood and Dawn proclaiming to be a witch, while Taylor said he was a warlock.