Neighbor testifies in Nachtman murder trial

TAMPA, Fla. (FOX 13) - On the first full day of testimony in the murder trial of Nicole Nachtman, the former Florida State University student accused of killing her mom and stepdad, prosecutors gave the jury a look at the crime scene during the moments leading up the murders.

Nachtman's neighbors heard gunshots, screams, and a saw shadowy figure running from the area.

Neighbor Westly Roe testified on the first full day of the trial, telling the jury he heard the gunshots

"I basically walked out to our living room to see what was going on and I heard a scream. It wasn’t a kid scream, it was a scream of agony or disbelief, and the next thing I saw a shadowy figure run between our two windows towards back in the lake,“ said Roe.

Prosecutors say Nachtman is a cold, calculating killer who set a deadly trap for her mother and stepdad, Myriam and Robert Dienes.

In August 2015, the former FSU student left campus, prosecutor John Terry says, and drove home to kill her parents.

"In order to kill her mom, she had to surprise her. She needed Robert out of the way so he wouldn't defend her and she needed her mom to be completely unexpected,” explained Terry. 

However, the defense says Nachtman is a broken and damaged young woman who suffered years of mental abuse at the hands of her mother.

Hillsborough County public defender Julie Holt says she had a psychotic break.

"Nicole Nachtman was alone, she was insane, and this was a result, unfortunately, of a bad upbringing," said Holt.