ALAMOGORDO, N.M. — To the friends and relatives of accused murderer Cody Posey, the New Mexico teen was a respectful, happy and outgoing child, except when his father and stepmother were around.

A revolving door of witnesses in Cody's first-degree murder trial described the two vastly different faces Cody wore — one for the outside world and another for when he returned to the isolated ranch where he lived with his father Paul Posey, stepmother Tryone, and 13-year-old stepsister Marilea.

"When he came to my house, he'd be happy and all that, like a normal kid. But when he got around Paul, he was quiet and he didn't talk unless he was spoken to," childhood friend Brandon Herrington testified Monday.

Cody admits to gunning down his family in their home, which was located on a ranch owned by journalist Sam Donaldson.

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But he claims the killings were precipitated by years of physical and emotional abuse at the hands of his father, who found a willing participant in his third wife, Tryone.

Parents from the Life Christian School in Roswell, where Cody attended elementary school, claimed that the boy's stepmother did not try to hide her dislike for her stepson.

"She was very ugly and very verbal about him," testified Jan Callaway, whose son was in Cody's fourth grade class. "She said that she hated him and that she was not going to let him get in between her and Paul."

Another mother described a similar alleged outburst from Tryone, who, according to the defense, began an affair with Paul when the two were still married to other people.

"She said he was worthless and that he was a horrible child," class mother Lori Taylor testified. "She said she couldn't wait until his mother came, maybe she could get rid of him that way, but under no circumstances would he come between Paul and her."

In fact, Cody returned to the custody of his biological mother for a brief period, after Paul Posey signed an agreement ceding all parental rights to his ex-wife, Carla Brust, in April 2000. The reunion was short-lived, however, and she died in a car accident three months later.

Friends and members of Cody's family from his mother's side testified Monday that the contrast in his demeanor was especially pronounced the day of his mother's funeral, when his father showed up to regain custody of him.

"From the look in his eyes, you could just tell he was devastated. He was crying. It was like nothing you'd seen before. It was like a horror movie," Lori Taylor's daughter, Courtney, testified. "He said if it was anything, he would rather live on the street than go with his father."

Nonetheless, Cody's maternal relatives were told they were powerless against Paul Posey's wishes to regain custody of his son, even as the 10-year-old was dragged away from them, literally kicking and screaming.

"He just kept saying over and over, 'Don't let him take me, don't let him take me, he beats me,'" his mother's cousin Sherry Gensler tearfully testified, as a female juror in the front row also shed tears. "He said, 'My mom said I never had to go with him again.'"

Sherry Gensler testified Monday.

A few months later, the Poseys moved out of Roswell and onto Donaldson's sprawling livestock ranch near Hondo, N.M., where Cody claims the abuse continued.

Three of Cody's former classmates from his junior high school in Hondo testified Monday that Cody once came to school with a black eye.

A cowboy who worked under Paul Posey on the Chavez Canyon ranch also expressed sympathy for the teen murder defendant as he related several instances in which he allegedly saw Paul Posey beat him.

"Cody sure pulled a lot of weight for a kid," former ranch hand Slim Britton testified. "He was expected to do a man's job."

But when the teen failed to meet his father's expectations, Britton said Paul responded with harsh name-calling and physically abusive behavior.

Britton's testimony was intended to corroborate Cody's own accounts of abuse, which he described last week for jurors.

Britton described one instance in which Posey hit his son with a small hook used to pick up and toss hay bales onto a truck. Britton held a similar hook while explaining that Posey was angry that his son couldn't haul heavy bales of hay.

He also repeated another of Cody's stories in which his father hit him from behind with a lariat for not moving an injured calf fast enough.

"It nearly knocked him off his horse," testified the 55-year-old, dressed in jeans, cowboy boots and a vest. "I've seen people who've been taken apart with it. It's like being hit with a piece of steel cable."

The lifelong ranch hand also testified that Cody seemed to be an outsider in his family.

"They talked down to him pretty hard," he testified.

Emily Nutt, Cody Posey's teacher, testified on his behalf Monday.

Cody's former Sunday school teacher, Emily Nutt, also testified Monday that she noticed the divide, particularly when it came to how the parents treated Cody and Marilea.

"I really tried to focus on Cody because Marilea had all encouragement in the world from her parents," said Nutt, who led the children in Bible studies and competitions. "They were always hugging and touching on her, always telling her what a good student she was and how beautiful she was."

The retired nurse also expressed sympathy for her former student, whom she described as a polite and intelligent child who stood out among his peers.

Nutt said she attempted to advocate on his behalf when his parents forbade him from participating in Bible drill competition and forced him to watch the others from the back of the room.

"I said, 'Oh please, Paul, he's worked too hard, he's too good at it and it's very important to him,'" said Nutt, recalling a conversation she had with Cody's father. "He then said, 'Let me ask you this. How does allowing a bad boy to compete in a state competition glorify God?' Then I ended the conversation. At that time, I had nothing to say."

The defense will continue its case Monday afternoon. The proceedings are being shown live on Court TV Extra.