Alternate Juror Begs to Be Excused from Komisarjevsky Case

For the second time this month, an alternate juror picked for the second Cheshire home invasion jury has returned to court and asked to be excused.

According to an article in the New Haven Register on Friday, the juror, a 35-year-old Wallingford woman, tearfully begged Judge Jon C. Blue to excuse her from serving on the jury.

The Register said the woman was horrified to learn that the defendant, Joshua Komisarjevsky, is accused of raping 11-year-old Michaela Petit during the home invasion robbery that ended with the murders of Michaela, her sister, Hayley, 17, and their mother, Jennifer Hawke-Petit.

Komisarjevsky faces the death penalty if convicted, unless jurors decide he should be sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of release instead.

During questioning on Thursday, the juror said she had three children, ages 8, 6 and 3.

The Register’s report suggested the woman might have been upset because she has a daughter close to Michaela Petit’s age.

Special public defender Jeremiah Donovan specifically asked the woman if she would be open to hearing evidence on mitigating factors against giving Komisarjevsky the death penalty after hearing that he had killed three people, committed robbery, burglary and kidnapping, and sexually assaulted an 11 year old. She said she could be open to considering the mitigating evidence.

He asked if it would be too upsetting for her to look at gruesome photographs of the crime scene and autopsies on the three victims introduced as evidence. She replied she could view that evidence as fairly as anyone else.

After questioning, Donovan asked Judge Jon C. Blue to excuse the woman for cause, because she said she knew some details about the case from news reports, but the judge declined because she also said she make a decision based on the evidence.

The defense lawyers then chose to accept her as a juror, as did the prosecutors, rather than use a peremptory challenge to excuse her.

Based on information from "a courthouse source," the Register said Judge Blue told the woman to return on June 2 for further questioning. If she still feels the same way, she may be excused.

On May 16, a 32-year-old male science teacher was picked as the first alternate juror, but he returned the next day and asked to be excused for financial reasons. Judge Blue excused him.

Three other women were also picked as alternate jurors this week, and another woman was picked as an alternate juror on May 19. Twelve regular jurors have also been selected.

In other news about the Komisarjevsky case this week, the state Appellate Court ruled that the witness lists that were prepared for jury selection should be released as public court documents.

When jury selection began in March, lawyers anticipated calling so many possible witnesses that Judge Blue ordered them to prepare written lists. Jury panelists read the lists to determine if they know anyone connected to the trial, which is cause to excuse them from jury service.

Initially, Judge Blue sealed the lists, but the Hartford Courant has fought a legal battle against Komisarjevsky’s defense lawyers for more than two months to unseal them.

The Appellate Court extended the stay on the release of the lists until June 1 to give Komisarjevsky’s attorneys a chance to appeal to the state Supreme Court.

Also, the Hartford Courant reported that Esquire magazine June/July issue would feature a feature on Dr. William Petit, the lone survivor of the home invasion ordeal. Last December he appeared on Oprah Winfrey’s television program.

Defense attorneys and prosecutors still must pick two more alternate jurors and three backup alternates. The trial is scheduled to start on Sept. 19 at New Haven Superior Court.

Jurors are warned the trial might last up to three months, which might affect them financially. The inability to bear the financial consequences of serving that long on a jury is the most common reason jury panelists have been excused.

Half of the regular jurors are employed by Yale University and at least one other by the state, which have liberal policies about paying employees serving jury duty.

The trial will be divided into two parts. The first is the guilt phase, in which the jury must decide if the defendant is guilty. The second is the penalty phase, in which the jury decides if mitigating factors outweigh aggravating factors enough to sentence Komisarjevsky to life without possibility of release rather than execution.

Donovan spent several minutes questioning the Wallingford woman about possible mitigating factors. Could she consider that diminished mental capacity might warrant a life sentence rather than the death penalty? Yes, she said.

He asked if she knew anyone who was adopted. She answered yes and that she had positive opinions about foster parenting.

Komisarjevsky is adopted, and in a prison diary he indicated he was sexually abused as a child, according to news accounts last year when parts of the journal were read aloud during the trial of his co-defendant, Steven Hayes.

Hayes was convicted and is on death row.

The two men met at a prison halfway where they participated in a drug and alcohol addiction treatment program.

Komisarjevsky’s prison journal was entered as evidence by defense lawyers for Hayes attempting to show that Komisarjevsky, not Hayes, was the evil mastermind of the crime. But in Komisarjevsky’s trial the journal might be presented as prosecution evidence.

Dr. William Petit, the lone survivor of the home invasion ordeal, described the journal as "the ravings of a sociopath who appears to be a pathological liar as well."

The Wallingford woman was also questioned by Senior Assistant State’s Attorney Gary Nicholson about how she would weigh testimony by psychiatric experts. Just because a witness is an expert she does not have to believe them, Nicholson said.

The juror said she felt psychological and psychiatric evidence would be helpful, but she would keep an open mind about it.

Judge Blue interjected that some medical professionals are more competent than others. What the court wants are jurors who are willing to listen to the evidence without assuming it must be true because it comes from an expert, he said.