Court hears testimony in trial of Princess Di's butler

LONDON -- An executor of Princess Diana's will was unaware of the existence of a letter detailing her wish that her jewelry go to her sons after her death, a court heard Wednesday.

The letter, which was produced by prosecutors at the trial of royal butler Paul Burrell, said Diana wanted three-quarters of the value of her $31.5 million estate to go to her sons and one-quarter to her 17 godchildren. Written on a separate page from her full will, the letter added that she wanted her sons, princes William and Harry, to have all her jewelry so their wives could "in due course" have use of it.

But the Bishop of London, the Right Rev. Richard Chartres, who was appointed an independent executor of Diana's will, said he had no knowledge of those wishes.

Under cross-examination, Chartres said he did not know that Diana's sister, Lady Sarah McCorquodale, and mother, Frances Shand Kydd, joint executors of the will, had been shredding Diana's documents.

The Old Bailey criminal court also was told that Lady Sarah spent two weeks destroying some of Diana's correspondence.

Chartres, the first non-police witness to give evidence at Burrell's trial, also said he had no recollection of being told by Burrell that the butler was retaining property in trust for William and Harry.

Asked if he ever gave permission to Burrell to remove property from Diana's home at Kensington Palace, Chartres replied, "Not to my recollection."

Burrell has pleaded innocent to three charges related to the theft of hundreds of items from the princess and other members of the royal family.

Burrell, 44, is accused of taking more than 300 items between Jan. 1, 1997 and June 30, 1998. The property allegedly belonged to Diana, Prince Charles or their son William. Diana was killed in a car crash in Paris on Aug. 31, 1997.

The former butler maintains the items were given to him by the princess for safekeeping.

A detective who searched Burrell's home told the court he found a bag in the attic containing hundreds of photo negatives, handmarked by Diana as depicting family birthdays and other private events.

Detective Sergeant Sidey said the negatives included a strip marked as William's 7th birthday and another marked as the 4th birthday of his younger brother.

Also found in Burrell's loft during a search of the home in Cheshire, northwest England, on Jan. 18, 2001, was a collection of 45 rpm records signed by Diana, said Sidey.

The collection included "A Groovy Kind of Love" by Phil Collins, "Love Changes Everything" by Michael Ball, a "Phantom of the Opera" single, and "All I Ask of You" by Cliff Richard and Sarah Brightman, as well as a compilation tape made on a home stereo.