Jury Finds Man Guilty of Murdering His Two Children

A jury took less than an hour Thursday to convict 37-year-old David Von Haden of murdering his two young children weeks after his wife asked for a separation in 1996.

Von Haden showed little reaction as the verdicts were read in Orange County Superior Court. He stared calmly at the panel of 10 men and two women who must now decide whether he should be executed for the crimes or spend the rest of his life in prison.

The jury convicted Von Haden of two counts of first-degree murder for the deaths of his son, Cody, 4, and daughter, Courtney, 2. They also found him guilty of the special circumstance of multiple murder, which makes him eligible for the death penalty.

Family members were warned by Judge Francisco P. Briseno not to show emotion when the verdicts were read. He told those who thought they might create an outburst to leave the courtroom.

The mother of the children, Laurie Liem, was present for the verdict and and remained composed. She is now remarried and pregnant with her second child with her current husband. Liem, accompanied in court by her mother, declined to comment on the verdicts.

Deputy Public Defender Jean Wilkinson was in tears as she left the courtroom. She had argued that her client was suffering from “clinical depression” when he suffocated the children with a pillow inside their Yorba Linda home and then tried to kill himself.

Outside court, co-defense attorney Michael P. Gianinni said Von Haden was handling the verdict relatively well and was more concerned with the welfare of his family members, including his mother, who had attended the trial faithfully but were unable to be present for the verdicts.

Defense lawyers tried to persuade the jury to convict their client on lesser charges of voluntary manslaughter, contending that he did not act out of malice.

Gianinni said that during the penalty phase, which begins on March 23, defense attorneys will focus on Von Haden’s conduct during his life.

“It’s going to be shown that he was--but for three or four hours in his life--a man who was a superb father . . . and a reliable husband,” Gianinni said.

Defense attorneys told the jury that after the breakup of his marriage, Von Haden had became deeply depressed and ultimately snapped after discovering that his wife was involved with Rick Liem, whom she later married.

The prosecution said Von Haden committed the murders as a way of seeking revenge.

Laurie Liem testified that Von Haden had admitted to the killing during a jail visit, during which he told her, “You’re young and you can have more kids.”

Liem also testified that Von Haden told her, “I know I have to pay for what I’ve done.”