Prosecutors have begun playing the much-anticipated videotaped confession of accused capital murderer Michael Scott.

And with Austin police Det. Ron Lara on the stand, a picture emerged of young, out-of-control potheads who wheeled around town in a downward spiral -- one that eventully led to that night when four young girls were murdered in a North Austin yogurt shop.

There are about 20 hours of total videotaped statements to be heard by the jury.

About two hours of tape were played from Scott's first interview on Monday.

Scott is on trial for the murder of Amy Ayers, the youngest of four girls killed on Dec. 6, 1991, in a North Austin "I Can't Believe It's Yogurt!" shop.

The defense filed at 115-page objection to the use of the confession. Defense attorney Dexter Gilford led that charge.

But Judge Mike Lynch overruled the main objections that police ignored Scott when he attempted to stop the questioning, the confession was elicited unjustly from his interrogation, the interrogation resulted from an illegal arrest and that Scott was not magistrated or warned of his Miranda rights before he confessed.

Assistant prosecutor Darla Davis called Lara to the stand for the playing of the tapes. He, along with Det. John Hardesty, interviewed Scott in September 1999 -- sometimes together.

Judge Lynch instructed the jury they would be given transcripts to follow along with the tapes but they would not be allowed to use them during deliberations.

Before the tapes played, Lara told the story of how he contacted Scott, through his wife, and arranged an interview. During that initial phone call Lara said Scott got very quiet when Lara told him it was about the yogurt shop murders.

Scott rode in a car with Lara to the police station on Sept. 9, 1999.

"You guys don't have anything new on this investigation do you?" Scott said, according to Lara during the ride to the police station. Lara said he told Scott he did not want to discuss the case until they got to the police station.

"Oh, well, that was probably a pretty dumb question for me to ask, wasn't it?" Scott replied.

From opening statements, it is known that by 5 p.m. in this particular interview, Scott implicates himself in the murders. One of the keys of Scott's defense is how the investigators got Scott to confess.

In the small interview room, Scott said he regularly smoked marijuana and that it had affected his memory.

"I'll be honest with you guys, I have a piss-poor memory," Scott said. "(Robert) Springsteen and I were kind of the potheads."

(Springsteen was convicted for his role in the murder of Ayers last year and was sentenced to death. Pierce is still awaiting trial.)

A hidden camera disguised as a smoke alarm recorded the interview. He said he gave up on school when he was 18 and still in the tenth grade.

He was shown pictures of the girls and said he remembers them from television but he doesn't remember them from school. Scott went to McCallum High School and three of the girls went to Lanier.

He said he remembered skipping school with Springsteen that day – the two lived in a condo together, next door to Springsteen's father. He recalled smoking marijuana and then going to the school to meet up with Forrest Welborn during lunch. He said they met up with Maurice Pierce, who they called "Reese."

Scott said Springsteen boasted he was a member of the Crips gang in another city, but the local affiliate wouldn't take him in.

Later, Scott spoke of a falling out between he and Springsteen: "You better pray to God I never catch up to him," Scott said, angry about Springsteen stealing his Metallica concert tickets and other items and selling them.

Scott also introduced another character into the story, a physically fit blonde boy he often referred to as the "nameless guy." Scott said he didn't know or can't remember his name. He often confuses him in the story line with Welborn.

After their lunchtime meeting, Welborn went back to class, Pierce left to run errands and Scott and Springsteen went to a nearby bowling alley and ate and then met with Springsteen's girlfriend, Kelly Hanna, near the school.

A few days before the murders, Scott said he was in the car when Pierce bought a .38 caliber handgun from two Hispanic men just four blocks from the school. That kind of gun was used in the murders.

"I think Reese was looking for some grass and got a gun instead…I hope I'm not lying to you guys," Scott said of his memory.

"Don't worry, take it slow," one of the detectives responded.

Just days after the murders, Pierce was arrested with a gun at Northcross Mall. That led to the interrogation of the four boys. After ballistics tests, police determined the gun was not the murder weapon and they were all cleared in the initial investigation.

In 1999, investigators were turned onto Scott who they were re-investigating as part of what police called the "Maurice Pierce tips file." Hanna told police that Scott would be the weak link.

Scott said the boys drove to the mall to hang out but he didn't remember much because he had a few beers to drink. After that the boys went to a party and got high and drunk, Pierce took them home between 10 p.m. and 10:30 p.m. That was an unusually early turn-in for the boys, Scott said.

"I'm sorry my memory is not so good guys. That's what I get for smoking so much grass," Scott said.

"It'll come back to you," Det. Hardesty answered.

Scott said a few days after the murders, the boys rode together to San Antonio, in a car Pierce stole, so he could break up with a girlfriend. He couldn't remember if Welborn or the "nameless guy," or both, were in the car with them.

The tapes will continue playing when the trial resumes Tuesday morning.

Earlier in the day, Dr. Thomas J. Brown, a pathologist, testified about the autopsies he performed on Ayers, Eliza Thomas and sisters Sarah and Jennifer Harbison. Brown told the jury all the victims died instantly from the gunshot wounds they received.