GUILTY CT - Jennifer Hawke-Petit, 48, & 2 daughters killed in home invasion, 23 July 2007

[joe jones]

and today there is motions being argued in front of judge, state wish to exclude one of the defence mental health witnesses

 

[PrairieWind]

and today there is motions being argued in front of judge, state wish to exclude one of the defence mental health witnesses

Any idea what that basis for the state's objection to this witness is? I don't know if the defense previously claimed diminished capacity or not.

 

[PrairieWind]

Where was JK working at the time this happened? There was reference to the fact that fuel is sometimes used to clean tools. I don't remember what JK was doing for work at the time though.

 

[joe jones]

Any idea what that basis for the state's objection to this witness is? I don't know if the defense previously claimed diminished capacity or not.

I think defence is using some mental health experts to explain that in there opinion he has some cognitive issues and thus was flummoxed when the time came to flee the house and could not make good decisions including the one to save the girls, they may also try to get into other mental health issues but it is not diminished capacity defence,

I think they will use more mental health experts in penalty phase if the jury decide on the capital charges

states objection was to the fact that this expert did not include in the report four years of Komisarjevskys life, I think they maybe the four years pre the murders

I do accept he like Hayes may have some mental health issues but they did not impact on the choices he made when he committed these crimes

Komisarjevsky is damaged from his early sexual abuse and his early depression which his parents refused to allow to be treated with medication, and these issues may have caused him problems in his life, and had some impact on his motivations, but he was not impaired to any extent in relation to his criminal conduct

well that is my opinion as of now, I have yet to hear all his history which we will learn during the penalty phase

 

[joe jones]

Where was JK working at the time this happened? There was reference to the fact that fuel is sometimes used to clean tools. I don't remember what JK was doing for work at the time though.

construction of some type, not sure what exactly

 

[PrairieWind]

I was thinking the testimony from the mental health experts was more appropriate for the penalty phase, then figured the defense was going to try to make some sort of claim that he fell under Hayes' control. We'll see I guess. The state didnt introduce the journal that JK wrote did they? May see that on rebuttal or in penalty.

If the judge decides the expert's testimony is relevant in this phase (ie relevant to guilt) then i'm sure he will allow the testimony. The missing years from the report will just be brought to the jury's attention by the presecution as a reason for the jury to discount or dismiss the expert's testimony.

 

[jilly]

However, prosecutors said in their motion, Shea's report does not include a four-year period — March 2002 to June 2006 — that they say is "relevant and admissible."

http://www.courant.com/community/ch...sarjevsky-day11-1005-20111004,0,7259773.story

 

[Native New Yorker]

Hmm, I sure hope they bring up the break-ins that he committed, when people were sleeping at home, and he had infra-red night goggles...sure seems like all that was leading up to the tragic night of horror at the Petit home.

 

[jilly]

Komisarjevsky Attorneys Start Defense With Questions About Tube Of Sealant

.....John McGrath, owner of a roofing supply company in Connecticut, was asked about the tube of sealant. The defense had asked him to provide specifications of the contents of sealants and bonding adhesives he sold.

He said machines that pump or spray the adhesives are powered by gasoline.

He also told Donovan that when sealants are opened they emit a strong odor and are potentially flammable, and as a result those opening them should not smoke when using them.

Michael Ranno of Brunetto Construction testified that Komisarjevsky had repaired a flat roof on a garage in New Britain on July 22, 2007, the day before the deadly home invasion. Ranno said he met Komisarjevsky later that day at the Cheshire Stop & Shop supermarket to pay him......

http://www.courant.com/community/ch...isarjevsky-day12-1006-20111005,0,963719.story

 

[PrairieWind]

I"m not sure this Dr. Shea testimony is adding that much. Of course i'm only getting the "tweeted" version and that is incomplete. But just saying "he doesnt do well under stress" isn't much of a defense. That could also be used by the jury to assume that panic set in at the end of the crime when JK realized the police were around and so he just decided to burn everyone. OR it could mean that JK intended all along to burn the house down.

 

[PrairieWind]

I wonder if the prosecution will bring up the fact that JK was an EMT. That certainly requires making decisions under stressful conditions.

 

[JSR]

I guess I'm a little baffled. I fail to see how JK's math skills have any relevance to his culpability in these murders.

 

[PrairieWind]

I think defense cousnel just torpedoes his expert's testimony. State was grilling the expert on JK's decision making and Donovan objected claiming that it was beyond the expert's knowleged what JK would decide in any given situation. Oops, wasnt that the point of the testimony? The judge over-ruled the objection anyway.

 

[PrairieWind]

So according to tweet, Dr. Shea is the last witness and there may not be any State rebuttal witnesses. Interesting.

 

[jilly]

I wonder if the prosecution will bring up the fact that JK was an EMT. That certainly requires making decisions under stressful conditions.

No kidding! Good point!

 

[jilly]

Neuropsychologist Details Komisarjevsky's Brain Functions


During Shea's discussion of Komisarjevsky's results on a series of cognitive tests, some jurors appeared inattentive and restless. But Shea's testimony about the sexual abuse Komisarjevsky allegedly suffered as a young boy seemed to grab their attention.

Shea testified to a hushed courtoom that Komisarjevsky was anally and orally raped between the ages of 4 and 6 and that he had been tortured by being burned.

Shea also testified about Komisarjevsky's significant drug use over an 18- to 24-month period, including the use of crytal methamphetamine and marijuana.

All of those experiences could have affected certain parts of Komisarjevsky's brain, Shea said. The effects include irritability, an inability to make decisions, problems socially and the lack of ability to think of the needs of other people.

http://www.courant.com/community/ch...isarjevsky-day12-1006-20111005,0,963719.story

 

[PrairieWind]

Dr. Shea never said if JK said who it was he claims sexually abused him. I assume that if we proceed to a penalty phase, we will hear much more about this claim. It really does go more to the sentence then the guilt phase, but probably was smart for the defense to raise it now. Gets the jury thinking about it. The testimony by the Doc that JK is a risk taker could be trouble for the defense in a penalty phase though. Prosecution could say that if you give him life, put him in regular prison, he will try to escape. That makes him an on-going danger and threat.

 

[dr dona]

boo Hoo for JK-----alot of abuse victims don't murder and sodomize an 11 year old!!!!! Cry me a river of tears for JK!!! Sorry, I just hate it when cold-blooded killers use their childhood as a excuse. The crime against this mother and her two innocent daughters was barbaric!!!!

 

[Madeleine74]

JK didn't intend to just rob the Petits. As a career criminal he had before managed to elude being detected. Now he purposely goes in and makes himself known, brutally beats a sleeping man, goes and wakes up the other members of the house, who were soundly asleep.

No, he was there because he wanted to sexually assault the 11 yr old girl. His excuse was that he just wanted money, but the details of the crime and the way it started do not support that. The robbery was the 2nd reason and what he likely told to Hayes. Hayes wanted money. JK wanted the 11 yr old (and then some money).

Guilty of first degree murder, and everything else.

He deserves nothing less than what he gave his last victims, which was certainly not 'life.'

 

[Madeleine74]

One additional point: Dr. Shea is likely repeating what JK told him in their sessions about his sexual abuse. I wouldn't believe a word out of JK's mouth without independent and irrefutable verification. JK is a manipulating sociopath. It would be just like him to spin a great tale of woe in order to try and manipulate a jury. I sure hope they don't fall for it.

There is no excuse at all for what he did and the destruction he caused. No amount of abuse absolves him of the torture and murder of this family. GUILTY!