Buffalo, NY (WBEN) The defendant in the hit and run trial has taken the stand. Dr. James Corasanti on Friday began testifying in his own defense in Erie County Court.

Corasanti is accused of striking Alix Rice with his car last July then taking off. He's charged with vehicular manslaughter, hit and run, DWI and texting while driving.

Under questioning from defense attorney Joel Daniels, Corasanti described his evening at the Transit Valley Country Club, saying he was there for a couples golf outing and described having three drinks. They included some wine that he got at 9:45 and finished around 11pm, just before heading home.

Corasanti then testified about the text messages he sent and received regarding plans for an office party and an upcoming business trip. Corasanti said he sent the messages from his phone while sitting at a red light and a stop sign.

The messages included a text sent to assistant Bonnie Warsaw at 11:19pm while stopped at the intersections of Hopkins and Dodge Roads.

"It was a dark night," Corasanti testified.

The defendant said he was traveling at  a speed between 35 and 40 mph, with the air conditioner on in his BMW and listening to his iPod, the sound of which he described as moderately loud.

Then Daniels had Corasanti describe what happened along Heim Road.

Corasanti said he felt his car run over something in the road, but he wasn't sure what it was. He says he didn't see anything on the road - a pedestrian, skateboarder or otherwise - and the whole thing happened, he said, in a "fraction of a second."

Corasanti said he didn't stop because nothing suggested he should stop his car.

Then, becoming visibly emotional, when asked if he would've stopped had he known he hit human being, Corasanti replied, "Of course," adding that he would've done "whatever I could've."

He then testified that he couldn't believe the amount of damage compared to what he felt while driving.

The defendant also said he felt fine when he left the country club.

He also testified that he told his wife that he hit something, but wasn't sure what it was.

Corasanti also testified that he chose to surrender to police at a location away from his home so his son wouldn't have to see it, again displaying plenty of emotion on the stand.

Under cross examination from assistant D.A. James Bargnesi, Corasanti said it would be "absolutely incorrect" to say that he had a bias only toward himself in this case.

Corasanti also testified that he doesn't think alcohol is to blame for the accident; that texting had no impact on the accident; and that he doesn'f think speed played a role in the accident.

During cross examination, Corasanti said "I wasn't drunk" as prosecutors focused on the number of drinks he had that night. He said he had three mixed drinks of rum and Diet Pepsi that night.

Based on some questions in the cross examination, the defense called for a mistrial, but that was denied by Judge Sheila DiTullio.

When Bargnesi asked if he thought driving in the bike lane had an impact, Corasanti said he believes he was traveling in the driver's lane along Heim Road.

Before the start of the afternoon session, Daniels again requested a mistrial based on some of the questioning from the prosecution pertaining to Corasanti's annual salary at the Buffalo Medical Group, his condominium in Naples, Fla., and the Corasanti relatives who own and operate ConMed, a publicly-traded medical-device maker in Utica.

Daniels called the questions "unfair" and "prejudicial."  In response, prosecutor Christopher Belling said the question were "entirely proper," as they focused on the defendant's interest, bias, and motive for testifying in his own defense.

Judge Sheila DiTullio denied the request for a mistrial.

Bargnesi spent time in the afternoon session asking questions about the drinks Dr. Corasanti ordered and drank that night.  But the defendant maintains that he wasn't drunk at the golf course. If that was the case, Bargnesi also wondered why Corasanti wouldn't agree to a breathalyzer test at 1:44am early that Saturday morning, nearly three hours after leaving Transit Valley.  Corasanti said he declined on the advice of his legal counsel.

When Bargnesi asked the defendant if he could've called a cab or left his BMW at Transit Valley and picked it up on Saturday, Corasanti agreed that he could've done that. But Corasanti also noted that he wasn't feeling the effects of the alcohol when he left the facility that night.

Corasanti also testified that he couldn't recall a time when he needed to make a split-second reaction to something on a highway.  He also said his BMW didn't prevent him seeing small objects on the road.

When asked if he felt a driver should have control of one's faculties while driving, the defendant responded, "That's fair."

Corasanti also said he doesn't remember any distractions after sending his last text message minutes before the accident. The defendant says his BMW was stopped at either a stop sign or traffic light while sending all his text messages.

As cross examination continued, Corasanti said he didn't hit his brakes, didn't swerve, and didn't stop when he thought the car hit something, and maintained, "I didn't see her [the victim Alix Rice].  But he did recall hearing a "thud."

Corasanti also agreed that he'd have to be looking out the windshield to see the victim -- or anyone. He also testified that he never saw the hood buckle on his BMW.

Corasanti is scheduled to return to the witness stand when the trial resume on Monday, May 21.
Sources tell WBEN there could be more witnesses for the defense.