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Ireland witness
says he tried to
talk sooner

A question asked by the
defense brings an answer that
seems to help the
prosecution

By Rod Thompson
Star-Bulletin

HILO -- Dana Ireland murder trial witness Michael Ortiz tried to tell authorities about a confession he heard from suspect Albert Ian Schweitzer the same day that he heard it, he testified yesterday.

But he was shipped to another prison the next day, finally ending up in Minnesota, and wasn't able to relay the information for eight months, he said.

The change of prisons appeared to answer a major question: Why Ortiz waited so long to talk. The answer appeared to strengthen the prosecution, but Ortiz gave it during questioning by the defense.

Ireland, 23, was murdered on Christmas Eve 1991, in a rural area south of Hilo.

Jim Ingham, husband of Ireland's sister Sandy, testified yesterday about finding Sandy's mangled bicycle borrowed by Ireland that afternoon and about seeing Ireland brought into Hilo Hospital, where she died that night.

In a previous trial, suspect Frank Pauline Jr., 26, was the star witness against himself. He had confessed numerous times.

Suspect trusted him

There was no similar confession by Schweitzer, 28, until Ortiz came forward in May last year, just three weeks before a deadline to charge Schweitzer and his brother Shawn, 24, with two of the offenses in the case -- kidnapping and sexual assault.

Ortiz said yesterday that Schweitzer developed a trust in him in the Hilo jail.

Schweitzer said he was driving his purple Volkswagen with his brother and Pauline on Christmas Eve, 1991 when Pauline whistled at a young woman on a bicycle.

"She flipped him off," Ortiz said.

Wanted to scare her

Schweitzer turned the car around and drove at her to scare her, but the car skidded and hit the back of the bicycle, knocking her into bushes, Ortiz said Schweitzer told him.

Pauline dragged her into the car. She bit his arm. Pauline tore off her shirt and bit her breast, Ortiz said Schweitzer told him. They drove to a back road where Pauline took the woman into the bushes, Ortiz said Schweitzer told him.

"He never seen nothing. The lady went yell," he said.

Then a light went on nearby and they all left quickly.

The reference to a light was not explained. Waawaa resident Ida Smith earlier testified it was daylight when she found Ireland.

Sometime later, Schweitzer gutted the interior of the Volkswagen and scrubbed everything with Ajax to get rid of blood, Ortiz said Schweitzer told him.

He replaced a dented bumper and repainted the car yellow "so nobody knows," Ortiz said Schweitzer told him. Ortiz said Schweitzer wasn't worried about DNA.

"They're not going to find no sperm from them on her because they never do nothing to her," Ortiz said Schweitzer told him.

Previous testimony was that DNA found in Ireland's body didn't match the three suspects. Ortiz made no mention of a theorized fourth attacker.

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Dana Ireland Archive