Hudson takes the stand in murder trial

Jennifer Hudson has taken the stand in the trial of the man accused of killing her family.

Hudson, who had decided not to hear the opening statements of the trial, took to the stand today in the trial of William Balfour, who is accused of killing the Oscar winner’s mother, brother and seven-year-old nephew.

Balfour has pleaded not guilty to three counts of first-degree murder over the October 2008 killings.

Prosecutors say he became enraged that Hudson’s sister, his estranged wife, had begun dating someone else.

The 30-year-old actress and singer is among 300 potential witnesses who could be called.

Prosecutors say Balfour used a .45-calibre handgun to kill Hudson’s mother, 57-year-old Darnell Donerson, in the living room, and then shot her 29-year-old brother, Jason Hudson, twice in the head as he lay in bed.

He allegedly drove off in Jason Hudson’s car with Julia Hudson’s son, Julian King, inside.

Authorities say he shot the boy in the head as he lay behind a front seat. His body was found in the abandoned vehicle after a three-day search.

There are no known witnesses to the killings.

Julia Hudson’s divorce from Balfour was finalised last year.

If convicted of at least two of the murder counts, 30-year-old Balfour, on parole at the time of the killings after serving nearly seven years for attempted murder and vehicular hijacking, would face a mandatory life sentence.

Hudson, the 2004 American Idol finalist and 2007 Oscar winner for her role in Dreamgirls, is expected to attend each day of evidence, which could last up to a month.