Petit Family -- William, Jennifer, Hayley & Michaela - Father Beaten, Wife & Daughters Murdered 7/23/07

This is one of the cases currently being discussed on truTV. It is a horrific story of a family destroyed. Steven Hayes, 47, and Joshua Komisarjevsky, 30, have been charged with the murders. The trial being discussed on truTV is Steven Hayes. Apparently the trial of Komisarjevsky will not happen for another year.

Connecticut massacre: Father's agony as court is shown harrowing pictures of scene of wife and daughters' murders

By Daniel Bates
Last updated at 1:07 PM on 17th September 2010


Unbearable: Dr William Petit, the father whose family were massacred in his own home in 2007, looks heartbroken outside court in Connecticut on the first day of the trial on September 13

The father whose family were raped and murdered in his own home turned away in court yesterday when photos of the crime scene were shown to the jury.

Dr William Petit kept his head facing down at all times to avoid pictures of the charred ropes the killers used to tie his daughter Michaela to the bed where she burned to death.

Other pictures were of a ripped T-shirt and partially burned shorts belonging to the 11-year-old and fragments of shorts worn by sister Hayley, 17.

They and their mother Jennifer Hawke-Petit, died when a blaze swept through their house in suburban Cheshire, Connecticut in 2007.

Two men - Steven Hayes, 47, and Joshua Komisarjevsky, 30 - are said to have strangled and raped Mrs Hawke-Petit and tied up her girls before setting the place on fire.

Hayes is currently on trial and Komisarjevsky will face a jury afterwards. Both could face the death penalty if convicted.

Dr Petit had wept openly in court when harrowing pictures of his girls’ blackened bodies were show to the jury earlier this week.

On the second day of such evidence, he decided the only way he could stay in the courtroom was not to look, so stared at the floor throughout.

The photos made clear that his once been a peaceful family home was ruined - picture after picture showed burned staircases and hallways and walls scarred black by smoke.

Prosecutors also showed photographs of a pickup truck they say was driven by Hayes that held items from the alleged burglary, including a purple knapsack embroidered with Hayley's name, a string of pearls in a plastic shopping bag and other jewelry.


Tragic: Dr William Petit is the only surviving member of his family. He managed to escape death by managing to free himself from being tied up in the basement


Brave: Mother-of-two Jennifer Hawke-Petit seen in a bank CCTV image withdrawing $15,000 in the hope that the kidnappers wouldn't hurt her family. Less than an hour later she and her daughters were dead

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/worldnews/article-1312735/Dr-William-Petits-agony-Connecticut-family-massacre-pictures-shown-court.html?ito=feeds-newsxml#ixzz10NJQcRIC

Dr. William Petit Takes the Stand, Tells of His Family's Slaughter
Pleasant Day Ends With Rapes, Beating, Two Men Setting Conn. Home Ablaze

By ANDREA CANNING, DAVID MUIR, SARAH NETTER and LEE KAMLET
Sept. 14, 2010



In dramatic testimony, a prominent Connecticut doctor described how he was beaten in his sleep and woke up face-to-face with two men who sexually assaulted, tortured and killed his wife and two daughters in a brutal home invasion.

Dr. William Petit, who took the stand Tuesday at the trial of one of the men accused of murdering his family, was the sole survivor of the 2007 attack. He told the court for the first time how Steven Hayes, along with co-defendant Joshua Komisarjevsky, allegedly broke into his Cheshire home, raped his wife and one of his daughters and set the house on fire.

After describing a pleasant Sunday leading up to the murder, Petit then told of a night of horror, beginning with the severe beating he suffered as he slept.

He said that around 3 a.m., "I remember I awoke in a daze thinking or feeling ow, ow, ow. ... Something warm was running down the front of my face. ... I saw two people standing in front of the sofa. ... (a) person who was walking said if he moves put two bullets in him."

Petit said the men bound his wrists and ankles with rope and plastic ties, and covered his face, then took him down to the basement, where they tied him to a pole. He said he went in and out of consciousness.

Upstairs in the house were Petit's wife, Jennifer Hawke-Petit and the couple's two daughters, Hayley, 17, and Michaela, 11.

"I heard moaning and thumps. I may have yelled out, 'Hey!' Then he said he heard someone upstairs say, 'You are alright, don't worry it's going to be all over in a couple minutes.' It was a different tone, it was much more sinister," he testified.

Petit said he did not know the fate of his wife and daughters, but said he heard his wife in the kitchen tell one of the attackers she needed to change clothes and get a checkbook. She went to a local bank early that Monday morning and withdrew $15,000.

Read more: http://abcnews.go.com/US/dr-william-petit-testifies-trial-familys-alleged-murderer/story?id=11633236

Justice at long last looming in family slaughter

By MICHAEL BENSON Post Correspondent
Last Updated: 10:50 AM, September 13, 2010
Posted: 5:21 AM, September 13, 2010

NEW HAVEN, Conn. -- One of the savages who slaughtered the wife and daughters of a prominent Connecticut doctor as they slept in their home finally goes on trial today for the monstrous crime that stunned the nation and left people wondering whether anyone is safe anywhere.

The victims were an ideal family.

Dr. William Petit Jr., the only survivor, is a respected endocrinologist.

Killed in cold blood were his wife, Jennifer Hawke-Petit, 48, who suffered from multiple sclerosis and worked with organizations fighting the disease, and their daughters, Hayley, 17, and Michaela, 11.


HORROR: The Petits -- (from left) Hayley, Michaela and parents Jennifer and William -- were savagely attacked at their Connecticut home by Steven Hayesand Joshua Komisarjevsky

Hayley was an aspiring doctor who was headed to her dad's alma mater, Dartmouth, while Michaela, a vivacious youngster, loved to cook -- and prepared the last meal her mother and sister ever ate.

The killers were both lowlifes who had been paroled multiple times despite having spent years behind bars. Neither had been convicted of a violent crime.

Steven J. Hayes will be tried first. His accomplice, Joshua Komisarjevsky, the adopted son of a prominent theatrical family whose roots trace back to Russia, will go on trial afterward.

The killers, who had been out hunting for prey, had spotted the victims by chance.

Jennifer and Michaela had decided to shop at their local supermarket in Cheshire, on the morning of July 22, 2007. It was there that Komisarjevsky noticed them and followed them to their Chrysler Pacifica.

He was "attracted to the car," Dr. Petit's brother, Glenn, told The Associated Press shortly after the crime.

Read more: http://www.nypost.com/p/news/local/justice_at_long_last_looming_in_OM6jQdyISUGkIvq9O3ud0J#ixzz10NNErohz

These are the killers:


Steven Hayes (left) Joshua Komisarjevsky (right)

Joshua Komisarjevsky and Steven Hayes

~ Snipped ~

On July 23rd, at 2 in the morning, Joshua Komisarjevsky and Steven Hayes were out on parole after serving time for burglary. They reported to a parole officer on a weekly basis and both had full-time jobs.

On July 23rd, at 3 in the morning, Joshua Komisarjevsky and Steven Hayes kicked in the door to the Petit residence, expecting to do a quick burglary job and split the proceeds.

The problem was, the Petit family was home at the time.

The two career felons beat down Dr. Petit, giving him head injuries that would send him to the hospital.

Steven Haynes tied up and raped Mrs. Petit. Joshua Komisarjevsky tied up the two girls and raped little 11-year-old Michaela Petit.[/i]

Read more: http://pysih.com/2007/08/08/joshua-komisarjevsky-and-steven-hayes/

~ Snipped from the NY Post article and bolded by me ~

Both Hayes, 47, and Komisarjevsky, 30, have offered to plead guilty in return for life sentences.

But prosecutors are demanding the death penalty, which requires a trial be held. The jurors must first determine guilt, then punishment.

Read more: http://www.nypost.com/p/news/local/justice_at_long_last_looming_in_OM6jQdyISUGkIvq9O3ud0J#ixzz10NSx7FKi

I don't blame prosecutors for demanding the death penalty. These two thugs showed a total disregard for human life and committed almost every crime in the book while raping, torturing, and murdering the Petit family.

I hope the dismissed juror who said he was confused by the presentation of the state’s case and bewildered by what seems to be a lack of preparation on their part is incorrect. The Petit family desperately needs justice and deserves to have the state at the top of their game while presenting this case.

I pray that Dr. Petit can find the strength to get through this and one day lead a halfway normal life.

I've been reading this case throughout the week at 48 Hours/Crimesider, I feel so terribly awful for Dr. Petit. My heart goes out to him as he sits in that courtroom.

Petit Family Murder Trial: New Evidence, Testimony Paints Graphic Picture of Conn. Home Invasion

Posted by Edecio Martinez
September 23, 2010


Petit Family (Personal Photo)

NEW HAVEN, Conn. (CBS/AP) The detective who interviewed Steven Hayes after his arrest in a deadly Connecticut home invasion took the stand Wednesday, saying Hayes told him no one was supposed to get hurt.

PICTURES: Petit Family Murders

State police Detective Anthony Buglione said that Hayes, one of two suspects charged with the murder and sexual assault of Jennifer Hawke-Petit and her two daughters on July 23, 2007, told police the original plan was to break into a home, tie the people up, steal their money and flee.

But then "things got out of control," Hayes allegedly told the detective.

Buglione testified that he interviewed Hayes the day of the crime and that he was emotionless and reeked of gasoline, according to CBS affiliate WFSB.

The detective testified that Hayes and his co-defendant, Joshua Komisarjevsky, hatched a plan to rob a home and ended up in a neighborhood in Cheshire, an affluent community in suburban New Haven.

The house they picked had a light on the rear porch, and police say Hayes told them they saw a man, Hawke-Petit's husband Dr. William Petit, sleeping on a couch on the porch. Komisarjevsky allegedly hit him four or five times with a baseball bat they found at the home.

Read more: http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-504083_162-20017372-504083.html

What a beautiful family... and what senseless, horrific deaths.



The Petit home after Hayes and Komisarjevsky set fire to it.



http://www.cbsnews.com/2300-504083_162-10004906.html?tag=page

For those who are interested, this link has complete coverage of the case:

http://www.cbsnews.com/8300-504083_162-504083.html?keyword=william+petit&tag=contentMain;contentBody

So sad....

Connecticut Home Invasion Murder Trial: "Sad Day" as Medical Examiners Testify

September 24, 2010 1:02 PM
Caroline Black

~Snipped~

According to CBS affiliate WFSB, the medical examiners took the stand Thursday to explain to jurors how Jennifer Hawke-Petit and her daughters, 17-year-old Hayley and 11-year-old Michaela died.

"I think we all knew the girls went through some really unpleasant things," Hawke-Petit's sister Cynthia Hawke-Renn told WFSB. "Didn't know all details, but we aren't surprised what the evidence shows. Just a sad day."

Read more: http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-504083_162-20017539-504083.html

OMG..... they just said on truTV that through testimony that has come out during the trial of Steven Hayes that Dr. Petit has had to learn two things about his 11 year old daughter.

1. Semen was found in her anal cavity.

2. Accelerant WAS poured over her body before she was set on fire... while she was still alive.

And that's just a tiny bit of the awful details Dr. Petit has has to hear about how his wife and two daughters were killed.

Steven Hayes is charged with triple murder, rape, kidnapping, burglary and arson. His partner in crime, Joshua Komisarjevsky, is charged with the same crimes and will go on trial next year.

FYI..... both defendants asked if they could plead guilty in order to have the DP taken off the table, but the prosecution refused to accept that offer. They felt they wanted to go ahead with death penalty trials for both of the defendants. Good for them!!!!

This case just breaks my heart. The Petits were just a good, upstanding family in their own home, sleeping, in the middle of the night.... and these monsters broke in and did what they did to them. It's so scary to realize this kind of thing can happen to any of us.....

Petit Foundation's Ride for Justice benefits worthy causes

Posted: September 27, 2010 at 10:20 AM ET

Cheshire, Connecticut – Led by a procession of state and local policemen, more than 2000 motorcycle riders poured into the back roads of Connecticut to support the inaugural Petit Family Foundation’s Ride for Justice on Sunday.

The foundation was created to carry on the legacies of Jennifer Hawke-Petit, Hayley Petit, and Michaela Petit, who were killed in a tragic home invasion in 2007.

Dr. William Petit, the only survivor of the home invasion, thanked the participants for their support as he remembered his wife and daughters.

“The foundation’s mission statement is to remember Jennifer, Hayley and Michaela with idealism, activism and kindness that they stood for. You know, two women and one little girl without a… without a bad thought in their bodies. So… what you’re doing is the kind of thing they would have been doing on Saturday or a Sunday," said Dr. Petit.

According to event organizers, proceeds from the motorcycle ride, estimated at $65,000, will benefit a variety of causes, including programs for victims of violence, and chronic diseases, as well as educational programs, especially for young women in the sciences.

Read more: http://insession.blogs.cnn.com/2010/09/27/petit-foundations-ride-for-justice-benefits-worthy-causes/

Connecticut massacre: Defence lawyer's extraordinary attempt to offer 'solace' to family as he denies daughter was raped

By David Gardner
Last updated at 1:25 AM on 25th September 2010


Offering 'solace': Accused rapist and murderer
Joshua Komisarjevsky's lawyer has made an
extraordinary denial to reporters

A lawyer denied his client was responsible for rape yesterday in an extraordinary attempt to offer some ‘small solace’ to the devastated family of the Connecticut home invasion victims.

Defence attorney Jeremiah Donovan insisted that 29-year-old accused murderer Joshua Komisarjevsky did not rape eleven-year-old Michaela Petit during the horrendous attack.

But his claim flies in the face of forensic evidence presented to the murder trial in New Haven, Connecticut.

The gesture was also in direct contravention of a court-imposed gag order in the case.

It came at the end of a torrid week of evidence at the trial of 47-year-old Steven Hayes, who was Komisarjevsky’s alleged accomplice in the 2007 home raid.

Dr William Petit, the only survivor, heard how his wife and youngest daughter were brutally raped and then left to die after their house was set ablaze by the two intruders.

The pair were caught as they tried to flee the burning home. Although Dr Petit was badly beaten with a baseball bat he had managed to escape to sound the alarm.

Inside, Dr Petit’s wife, Jennifer, had been raped and strangled. The couple’s two daughters, Hayley, 17, and Michaela, had been tied to their beds, doused with petrol and burned alive.

Before the killings, the men had forced Mrs Hawke-Petit to withdraw $15,000 from her bank account with a promise that they would free the family if she cooperated.

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/worldnews/article-1315088/Connecticut-massacre-Lawyer-says-Michaela-Petit-raped.html#ixzz10kCcNvqy

After reading what this monster Komisarjevsky did to Michaela, it increases my understanding of why prosecutors refuse to settle for a life sentence in this case.

Why is Komisarjevsky's lawyer even commenting, especially in violation of a gag order, while Hayes' trial is still going? Is he setting the stage to get a potential death penalty conviction against Komisarjevsky overturned because of ineffective counsel.

Is Hayes' defense going to go the same route and waste time presenting theories that have been clearly debunked by forensic evidence? If that is the case, they should just rest their case immediately and wait for the penalty phase to stage a futile attempt at begging for this monster's life to be spared.

A Gagged Order

by Katie Rohner | Sep 26, 2010 3:03 pm


Jeremiah Donovan leaving the courthouse.

“We are deeply sympathetic to the sadness of the Petit family. Probably this is very small solace.”

Jeremiah Donovan shared this sentiment on Friday with the press. “Probably” turned out to be an understatement.

Donovan is the lawyer who will represent Joshua Komisarjevsky when he is tried for his role in the Cheshire triple murder case. The small solace Donovan was offering was his assurance that Michaela Petit had not been anally raped by his client the morning she died. Komisarjevsky, he told the press, only ejaculated on the young girl—and Donovan wants the family to believe this because his client said so.

Donovan made that statement outside the Church Street courthouse where his client’s alleged accomplice, Steven Hayes, in on trial for his role in the same crime, the 2007 Cheshire home invasion and murders of members of the Petit family.

Hayes is on trial for capital felony murder, arson, kidnapping, sexual assault, and other charges. Komisarjevsky will face the same charges next year.

On Friday, DNA experts and a fire marshal gave dramatic testimony during day seven of the Hayes trial. Forensic scientist John Schienman, discussed how DNA is analyzed to find consistencies in blood and seminal fluids taken from crime suspects and victims. He found DNA matching William Petit’s profile in blood samples taken from Komisarjevsky’s sweatshirt, the Petit basement, the garage floor of their neighbor, and a Louisville Slugger baseball bat. Petit was beaten with the bat and tied to a basement pole during most of the ordeal. Hayes was found to be a “contributor” in a DNA sample taken from a vaginal swab of Jenniifer Hawke-Petit. He is accused of raping her.

Dononvan was concerned about the finding that Komisarjevsky was a contributor to DNA found on an anal swab of Michaela.
Donovan, a well-respected former federal prosecutor who once argued for the abolishment of the insanity defense, now defends those accused of crimes. He sits in Courtroom 6A every day observing testimony and taking notes, During the lunchtime break on Friday, he held an impromptu press conference on the courthouse steps to clear up the “mistaken impression” he felt the Petit family had about the true nature of Komisarjevsky’s sexual assault on 11-year-old Michaela. His extraordinary statement, which is premised on a detailed confession that “Josh” gave police on July 23, 2007, not only angered the Petit family and, seemingly, the lawyers on both sides of the Hayes case; it also mystified journalists, and appeared to violate a court-imposed gag order prohibiting such communications.

Read more: http://newhavenindependent.org/index.php/archives/entry/petit_diary_day_7_/id_29643

Heard this morning on truTV that the judge in this case has issued a order for Jeremiah Donovon to appear before him to show why he shouldn't have charges of contempt brought against him... what happens with Donovan completely disregarding the gag order should be interesting.

I didn't think the judge would overlook this. It definitely will be interesting to see what the consequences are for Donovan.

Home invasion attorney faces contempt

Updated: Monday, 27 Sep 2010, 12:35 PM EDT
Published : Monday, 27 Sep 2010, 12:35 PM EDT



New Haven, Conn. (AP) - An attorney for one of two Connecticut men charged with killing a mother and her two daughters in a 2007 home invasion is facing a criminal contempt of court hearing after speaking out about the case.

New Haven Superior Court Judge Roland Fasano on Monday ordered attorney Jeremiah Donovan to appear Oct. 6. Fasano said Donovan's statement Friday violated a court-imposed gag order and could prejudice the trials of both men.

Read more: http://www.wtnh.com/dpp/news/new_haven_cty/cheshire-home-invasion-attorney-faces-contempt

I saw this case on TV & just broke down in tears. What a horrible thing to have happen.