The lawyer for Steven Hayes told a jury on Monday that his client will "concede much, but not all" of the case against him and said his client killed a Cheshire mother in a brutal home invasion three years ago that also resulted in the deaths of her two children.
As Hayes' trial began on Monday in New Haven Superior Court, a prosecutor warning jurors that they would hear "indescribable" details and Thomas Ullmann, Hayes’ public defender, told the jury Monday that the 47-year-old Hayes killed and sexually assaulted Jennifer Hawke-Petit.
Hayes is trying to avoid the possibility of being put to death in the slayings of Jennifer Hawke-Petit and her 11- and 17-year-old daughters.
Ullmann noted that Hayes told police that things "got out of control," and that Hayes' co-defendant, Joshua Komisarjevsky, 30, said no one was supposed to get hurt.
The crime started out as a robbery but became a homicide and ended with the house being burned to destroy evidence, Ullmann said. Authorities say the fire killed the children.
"I hope I don't sound callous or indifferent in describing what happened. These are the chilling facts of the case," Ullmann told jurors.
State's Attorney Michael Dearington told jurors they would hear "indescribable events in the testimony," but asked them to render a fair decision.
Hayes and Komisarjevsky, who is awaiting trial, have tried to blame each other for escalating the crime. Both defendants had offered to plead guilty in exchange for life sentences, but prosecutors pushed for death penalty trials, defense attorneys have said.
Also Monday, Judge Jon C. Blue dismissed three women from the jury after asking the panel if there were any new developments that would affect their service.
Blue dismissed one juror who said her job hours had changed and that serving on the jury would now be a financial hardship. A second woman was excused after she said she had learned some details about Hayes, including that he had tried to commit suicide in prison. The third juror dismissed said she now thought she couldn't go through a trial and her memory wasn't good.
The jury now includes six women and six men. Four alternate jurors remain.
Authorities say a chance encounter at a local supermarket led to the July 2007 home invasion.
Komisarjevsky spotted Jennifer Hawke-Petit and her two daughters at the store and followed them home, then returned later with Hayes, authorities said.
Authorities say Hayes and Komisarjevsky, two paroled burglars, broke into the house, tied up Dr. William Petit and beat him, before taking his family hostage and forcing his wife to withdraw money from a bank.
The first witness to testify was Kristin Makhazangi, the bank teller who served Hawke-Petit. Makhazangi said Hawke-Petit told her she needed to withdraw $15,000 because her family was being held hostage.
"Her hands were a little shaky but she was not overly anxious," Makhazangi said. "She was focusing on our conversation."
Makhazangi said she talked with the bank manager, gave Hawke-Petit the money and then saw her get into a car that police say was being driven by Hayes. A bank employee simultaneously called police.
Hayes is accused of sexually assaulting and strangling Hawke-Petit. Komisarjevsky is charged with sexually assaulting 11-year-old Michaela. The two then allegedly tied the girls to their beds, poured gasoline on and around them and set the house on fire.
Hayes and Komisarjevsky fled the burning home in the family's car, but were caught a short time later when they rammed several police cruisers, authorities said. Hayes was wearing 17-year-old Hayley's high school cap, police say.
Dr. William Petit, Jennifer’s husband, is the only survivor of the home invasion in Cheshire. He is scheduled to testify.
You can read a preview of what to expect in the case here.
You can follow the trial on Twitter as Diana Perez offers updates from the trial.
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