Jury selection begins for FSU student accused of murdering parents

TAMPA, Fla. (FOX 13) - Somewhere in a group of 100 potential jurors are the 12 people who will decide the fate of 25-year-old murder defendant Nicole Nachtman.

The former Florida State University student traded in her orange jail jumpsuit for a black-and-white blouse and black pants Monday. Nachtman sat somberly at the defense table for the first day of jury selection.

Prosecutors say Nachtman left the FSU campus and drove home to Carrollwood to kill her parents.  She then drove back to her dorm room at FSU to start her sophomore year.

Nachtman's brother claims his little sister feared their mother, who was controlling and abusive. Her defense team blames the murders on "battered child syndrome" coupled with temporary insanity.

Hours before picking a jury, prosecutor John Terry raised a potential red flag in her defense. 

"Obviously now with this new defense of insanity and the self-defense, these are potentially conflicting defenses. I would just judge if there could be a quick inquiry of Ms. Nachtman that she's in agreement with her attorneys presenting both of these defenses," requested Terry.

After a quick chat with one of her attorneys, Nachtman was on board with her defense strategy.

Hillsborough Circuit Judge Christopher Sabella asked Nachtman if she agreed with her admitting the murders of her parents. The soft-spoken Nachtman responded, "Yes, sir." 

The two murders will be tried as one trial and it's expected to last two weeks.