Madera murder victim beaten with dumbbell and slashed with a knife

MODESTO, Calif. (KFSN) -- More than six years after the murder of a Madera teen the second suspect accused of killing her is now on trial.

Investigators say Krista Pike was beaten with a dumbbell and slashed with a knife in 2008.

Dustin Gran was sentenced to life in prison for the murder in June. And Wednesday, the trial began for Brittany Navarra. Prosecutors say text messages prove she pushed Gran to carry out the crime.

The trial was moved to Modesto because of all the attention it received in Madera. The defense attorney chose not to give an opening statement, but the prosecutor began laying out his case for the jury, calling officers and Pike's fianc to the stand.

Thomas Hollier stood in the hallway of the Stanislaus County courthouse before giving a gut wrenching testimony about the murder of his fiance, Krista Pike. Cameras were not allowed in the courtroom as he described coming home from high school to find her nearly naked body on the floor of the home they shared with his father. The deputy district attorney also showed photos of the bloody crime scene, and an officer explained the wounds to Krista's head, neck, stomach, and legs.

The victim's mother Stacie Pike said, "That's why I'm stepping out every now and then because I don't really need to hear the details again."

Stacie has already sat through one agonizing trial for her daughter's death, which led to a life sentence for Dustin Gran. Now she's facing it all over again with Brittany Navarra. Prosecutors say the then 16 year old convinced Gran to carry out the deadly plot so she could rekindle a relationship with Hollier. The murder took place on January 14th, 2008, just weeks after Krista gave her mother a priceless gift.

"This bracelet Krista used her one and only paycheck from her one and only job, and she bought me this bracelet for me for Christmas right before she died so I wear it in memory of her," added Stacie.

Now, more than six and a half years later, Krista's loved ones are hoping they can soon move on with life outside the courtroom.

Wednesday, one of the jurors who convicted Dustin Gran on murder charges briefly stopped by and sat in the courtroom, but he did not want to speak about the verdict until after Navarra's trial is over. It's expected to last about a month.