Joshua Komisarjevsky’s was the second guilty verdict handed down in the brutal 2007 home invasion case in Connecticut in which a mother and her two daughters were tortured, doused in gasoline and left to die in their burning home. He now faces the death penalty or life in prison for these crimes.
In spite of the defense’s arguments that Komisarjevsky was sexually abused, burned and beaten as a child and that it impaired “his ability to make quick decisions under stress,” the jury found him guilty of all counts in the second day of deliberations, following a three week trial.
Prosecution in the case stated that Komisarjevsky and Steven Hayes entered the home of Dr. William Petit on July 23, 2007, after Komisarjevsky followed Jennifer Hawke-Petit and her youngest daughter, Michaela home from a grocery store. What followed were hours of terror in which Dr. Petit was beaten with a baseball bat and tied up in the basement of the family home while his 17 and 11-year-old daughters were tied to their beds and his wife was forced to accompany Hayes to the bank to withdraw cash. Komisarjevsky admitted to molesting the Petit’s youngest daughter during those hours. Hayes was convicted for raping and strangling Hawke-Petit after returning with her from the bank.
Although Dr. Petit was ultimately able to escape the home, experts testified that his two young daughters likely lived for several minutes in the blaze before succumbing to smoke inhalation.
Dr. Petit reportedly attended every day of the Komisarjevsky trial, just as he had attended Hayes’ trial last year. Following the murders of his family, Dr. Petit has served as President of the Petit Family Foundation in memory of his wife and daughters.
“The Petit Family Foundation honors the memories of Jennifer Hawke-Petit, Hayley Elizabeth Petit and Michaela Rose Petit by continuing the kindness, idealism and activism that defined their lives,” reads the mission statement of the Petit Family Foundation. “The Foundation’s funds are given to foster the education of young people, especially women in the sciences; to improve the lives of those affected by chronic illnesses; and to support efforts to protect and help those affected by violence.”
Among the seventeen charges against Komisarjevsky were three counts of murder, four counts of kidnapping, burglary, sexual assault and arson. Steven Hayes, who was with Komisarjevsky on the night of the Petit murders, was found guilty of 16 of 17 charges in 2010 and has been sentenced to the death penalty. Sentencing for Komisarjevsky will begin on October 24.