San Diego, California News Station - KFMB Channel 8 - cbs8.comMan found guilty in strangling deaths of woman, baby

Man found guilty in strangling deaths of woman, baby

A Bonita man was convicted today of two counts of first-degree murder for strangling the mother of his child and killing his 10-month-old son after the woman threatened to take him to court over the child's paternity.

Dennis Potts, 25, faces life in prison without the possibility of parole when he is sentenced Nov. 6 by San Diego Superior Court Judge Bernard Revak.

Jurors deliberated for about three days before convicting Potts of killing 22-year-old Tori Vienneau and their child, Dean Springstube.

Deputy District Attorney Per Hellstrom told jurors in his closing argument Tuesday that Vienneau was killed July 26, 2006, on a night she and Potts had dinner plans.

Potts lied to police when he told them he called off dinner with Vienneau, Hellstrom said, because it was the victim who canceled the meeting.

That was the night Vienneau planned to tell Potts she was taking him to court over the paternity of their baby, according to Hellstrom.

"This was clearly the catalyst that caused Mr. Potts to kill her," the prosecutor said, telling the jury the suggestion that a stranger broke into Vienneau's apartment and killed her and her baby was an "absurd conclusion."

A "ping" from a cell phone tower at 6:44 p.m. put the defendant near the victim's apartment in south San Diego around the time she was killed, the prosecutor said.   `

The man who the defense claimed is the real killer, Daniel Moen, couldn't have committed the crimes because he was at work, the prosecutor said.

Besides, Moen cared for Vienneau and loved her baby, Hellstrom said. 

By contrast, Potts had no relationship with his son and lied "up and down" about his role in the murders, Hellstrom said. 

Potts erased all of his text messages from that night, then ordered his cell phone records and altered them, the prosecutor said.

The defendant said he was at friend Max Corn's home working on a project when Vienneau was killed.

Hellstrom labeled as "chilling" the Internet searches done by Potts a month before the murders, in which he researched such topics as "how to cheat a swab paternity test," "the best way to kill someone," "getting away with murder" and "getting out of child support."

Defense attorney Kerry Armstrong told the jury that Potts did the searches in connection with a school paper on euthanasia. He also had some fascination with death, was interested in mixed martial arts and was worried about his father's failing health, his lawyer said.

Potts' palm print on the door jam of the room where the baby was hanged in his crib could have been put there weeks before because the defendant had been to Vienneau's apartment three or four times, Armstrong argued.

Potts made changes to his cell phone records because he was "scared," but never showed the altered records to anyone, his attorney said.

Just because Potts lied to police doesn't mean he's guilty of murder, Armstrong said.

There is no direct evidence linking Potts to the murders, the defense attorney said.

"This is a 100 percent circumstantial case," Armstrong told the jury.

Hellstrom told the jury that Potts surprised Vienneau in her apartment, knocking her unconscious and then strangling her with the cord from a hair-straightening iron. Potts ripped the victim's blouse to try to make it look like she was sexually assaulted, the prosecutor said.

The defendant then proceeded to the baby's room and hanged the child in his crib with a cord from a cell phone charger, Hellstrom said. 

Hellstrom said Potts lied to police when he said a paternity test he took was legitimate, when in fact he had used his friend Corn's DNA to submit for the test.

Corn, who faces a conspiracy charge, will be tried following Potts' case.