Storylines unfolding in Nestande trial

AUSTIN (KXAN) - Attorneys gave two very different versions of the events leading to Courtney Griffin’s death during opening arguments of Gabrielle Nestande's trial -- where she's charged with three felonies.

Nestande wiped tears from her face as her attorney, Perry Minton, told the jury that a poorly lit road prevented her from seeing Griffin in the early morning hours of May 27, 2011.

“The evidence will show there is no way she could have seen Courtney Griffin at that point,” said Minton.

However, the prosecution argued that Nestande hit Griffin because she was drunk after a night of fun with her friends and that her story changed in the hours afterward.

“The story has gone from, ‘Somebody threw something at my windshield,’ to ‘I hit a deer,’” said Assistant District Attorney Mary Farrington. “She also said she had five beers.”

Farrington also said an expert will testify that there was enough light on Exposition Boulevard.

“He found she would have seen Courtney from 600 feet had she been sober,” said Farrington.

Minton maintained that Nestande was pressured to go out by friends that night -- adding that while she did have a few drinks, she was not intoxicated.

He said Nestande left the wreck because she was scared and did not know if she had hit a deer or if someone had thrown a rock at her BMW.

“She thought she hit a deer," said Minton. "It never for one second dawned on her she had hit a person."

Nestande will testify during the trial, according to Minton.

The first witness called was Griffin’s friend, Kelly Bailey who testified the two walked often in the area where Griffin was killed.

Griffin was walking home from Bailey’s the night of the accident.

Bailey testified that the area is well lit for walking at night, but Perry Minton tried to question her about the safety of Exposition Blvd and the accompanying bike lines.

She did agree with Minton that Exposition is a major thoroughfare through the neighborhood, but she also testified that the picture Minton showed the jury seemed darker than what she is used to seeing.

The man who discovered Griffin’s body also testified about the scene he woke up to that morning. He made his testimony as crime scene photographs were displayed for the jury.

During this testimony, Nestande was consistently wiped her eyes with tissue and dropped her head into her hand.

Emotions ran high when EMT and forensic investigators testified about responding to the scene of Griffin’s body. A couple of Courtney’s friends had to leave the courtroom due to the nature of the testimony while Nestande and many others kept their gaze down.

The jury in the trial got seated Monday after attorneys whittled down the list of 85 potential jurors to 12 people.