Controversial book or not, jury selection will begin in January in the trial for one of two defendants in the 2007 Cheshire home invasion.
Steven Hayes' attorneys wanted a four-month delay. Public emotion had been enflamed by a new book based on interviews with co-defendant Joshua Komisarjevsky, who blames Hayes for the triple murders, they argued.
New Haven Supreme Court Judge Jon C. Blue rejected the request Thursday and said the ability to question jurors individually allows lawyers to weed out anyone swayed by the book.
Both men have pleaded not guilty to murder and other crimes in the deaths of Jennifer Hawke-Petit and her daughters, 11-year-old Michaela and 17-year-old Hayley.
The case has been continued to Jan. 6.
Copyright AP - Associated Press
