Joshua Komisarjevsky was found guilty Thursday for his role in the 2007 Conneticut home invasion in which Jennifer Hawke-Petit, 48, Hayley Petit, 17, and Michaela Petit, 11, were murdered. The ruling makes him eligible for the death penalty, according to CNN.
Hayley Petit daughter of William Petit '78, who survived the attack would have matriculated with the Class of 2011.
After a three-week-long trial, Komisarjevsky was found guilty of 17 charges, including three counts of murder, four counts of kidnapping and charges of burglary, arson and assault, according to CNN.
William Petit spoke outside the New Haven, Conn., courtroom following the trial, saying he was "very pleased with the 17 of the 17 guilty charges," according to ABC News.
Steven Hayes, Komisarjevsky's accomplice, was convicted on Oct. 5, 2010, on all six of the capital crimes and 10 of 11 other crimes for which he was charged. Hayes is currently awaiting the dealth penalty, CNN reported.
In 2010, Hayes' lawyer claimed that extensive media coverage and the political nature of the trial influenced the jury's decision. Previous U.S. Supreme Court cases have indicated that death sentences can be overturned if bias is shown to have played a role in sentencing, according to the Associated Press.
Connecticut has only seen one federal execution since 1960 that of Michael Ross in 2005 for the rape and murder of eight young girls. Before Ross, the last man executed in Connecticut was Joseph Taborsky for robbery and murder on May 17, 1960.
The prosecution claimed that Hayes and Komisarjevsky entered the Petit home on July 23, 2007, attacked William Petit with a baseball bat before tying him up. They then raped and strangled Petit's wife, molested one of their daughters and set the house on fire before fleeing, according to CNN. Petit's two daughters died of smoke inhalation but William Petit was able to escape, according to CNN.
Defense attorney Jeramiah Donovan said Komisarjevsky "did not intend for anyone to die" during closing arguments in Tuesday's trial, and referred to his client as a "damaged man," attributing the attack to his client's psychological problems and "poor decision making skills" that originated from a history of childhood sexual abuse and drug abuse.
Komisarjevsky was raped by a foster brother at the age of five and was the victim of domestic abuse, ABC News reported. Komisarjevsky's family appeared in court for the verdict.
As a result of Thursday's convictions, Komisarjevsky is eligible for the death penalty, according to ABC News. An Oct. 24 hearing will determine whether he will receive capital punishment.
Petit said the perpetrators' attack on his family was partly about "sexual predation," ABC News reported.
"[There is a] huge plague of violence against women in this country and across the world," Petit said in an interview with ABC News. "I thought a thousand times what would have been different if I had two sons as opposed to two daughters."
William Petit founded The Petit Family Foundation to honor the memories of his daughters and wife and "continue the kindness, idealism and activism that defined their lives," according to the Foundation's website. The Foundation aims to support efforts to protect and help victims of violence and chronic illnesses, and to help educate young people, especially women in the sciences.
Prosecutor Gary Nicholson and defense attorney Walter Bansley did not respond to requests for comment by press time.
