CLEVELAND, Ohio – The trial of a Parma man accused of killing a 20-year-old transgender woman in April began Tuesday.

Cemia "Ce Ce" Dove was born Carl Acoff Jr., but self-identified as a woman and will be referred to by prosecutors during the trial as such. Dove's body was found in an Olmsted Township pond, anchored by a block of concrete. Dove had been stabbed repeatedly.

Andrey Bridges, 36, is charged with aggravated murder, kidnapping, tampering with evidence and gross abuse of a corpse.

Assistant Cuyahoga County Prosecutor Brian Radigan briefly described for the jury how Dove's body was found and how police used taxi cab call records to link Bridges to the crime. He didn't present a motive but said witnesses would tell the story as the trial unfolded.

Defense attorney Henry Hilow told jurors that there had been a lot of talk and conjecture about what the case was about. He asked the jurors to consider evidence and witness testimony, not theories.

"We're not here to create false impressions," he said. "It's about fact."

Bridges has a long and sometimes violent criminal record that includes convictions for aggravated assault, burglary, domestic violence, theft, drug possession and attempted drug trafficking. He was on probation to Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Judge Hollie L. Gallagher in connection to a 2010 assault when he was arrested. The trial is in her courtroom.

Bridges, who is represented by Hilow and attorney David Grant, has filed a number of motions on his own from the Cuyahoga County Jail asking that his trial date not be continued and that attorneys be removed from his case.

The defense attorneys, Radigan and Assistant County Prosecutor John Colan spent Tuesday selecting jurors to serve in the case.

Gallagher said the jury will start Wednesday with a trip to Olmsted Township so they can view the crime scene that will be the focus of the case.