Parole Monitoring Ended Days Before Murder

Update at 5:35 p.m. on Nov. 9

Four days before Joshua Komisarjevsky committed a brutal home invasion and triple murder, a monitoring bracelet was removed from his ankle by his parole officer.

According to the Republican American:

Komisajevsky's parole officer, Abigail Cintron, testified that she placed the ankle bracelet on Komisarjevsky on March 21, when he was released to her from a Hartford halfway house. She removed the bracelet on July 19. His conditions of parole required that he be monitored for only three months.

Komisarjevsky was found guilty of 17 charges in the deaths of Jennifer Hawke-Petit and her two daughters during a home invasion on July 23, 2007.

Update at 6:25 p.m. on Nov. 8

In an interview with Radar Online, Caroline Mesel, ex-girlfriend of convicted killer Joshua Komisarjevsky, talks about what he was like as a boyfriend – and as a father.

"His daughter was adorable, he loved her to death. He was a great dad," Mesel told RadarOnline.com in an exclusive interview, as she revealed how 31-year-old Komisarjevsky cared for his then five-year-old daughter.

Joshua was granted sole custody of the girl two months before the murders after being embroiled in a bitter custody battle with her mother, Jennifer Norton, who was being treated at a crisis intervention unit.

Mesel was dating Komisarjevsky at the time of the 2007 home invasion and murders. She told the website that she met Steven Hayes, the accomplice in the murders, and that he was “creepy.”

Update at 5:30 p.m. on Nov. 7

With Joshua Komisarjevsky facing the death penalty for his role in a triple murder and the sexual assault of a young girl, his psychologist told jurors about a history of sexual abuse he suffered as a child.

According to the Associated Press:

Clinical psychologist Leslie Lebowitz testified Monday in New Haven Superior Court that she met with Komisarjevsky more than a dozen times for a psychological evaluation of him. Lebowitz said she concluded Komisarjevsky was sexually abused "not every day, but a lot" [by his adopted brother].

Komisarjevsky's defense says his strictly religious family never got him proper psychological treatment.

However, she said there was no excuse for the crimes Komisarjevsky was convicted of. 

Update at 4:10 p.m. on Nov. 3

Prosecutors are fighting a move by the defense that would allowJoshua Komisarjevsky’s nine-year-old daughter to testify as jurors consider whether he should be given the death penalty.

According to ABC News, the defense has filed a subpoena for the daughter to appear, while prosecutors and others have opposed the move.

A number of studies have been done on the effects of testifying in a trial on children. "Criminal court testimony is associated with fear and anxiety for a substantial subset of children," according to a study done in the 1990's at University of California, Davis. "The adversarial, formal, and possibly even hostile court environment during a hearing and especially a trial is a source of a child witnesses' fear and distress."

Update at 4:40 p.m. on Nov. 2

When Joshua Komisarjevsky was a troubled teen in a deeply religious household, he confided in a pastor that he witnessed a demon. Bryce Whiting told jurors the story on Wednesday during the ongoing penalty phase of Komisarjevsky’s trial.

According to the Associated Press:

Bryce Whiting testified that Joshua Komisarjevsky was visibly shaken as he described "a dark spiritual being with glowing eyes and menacing in his appearance" by a TV where he had made a pipe bomb. The pastor, who belonged to the same New Hampshire church as Komisarjevsky's family at the time, said he and others led Komisarjevsky in prayers telling the devil to leave as they placed their hands on him.

Update at 5:10 p.m. on Nov. 1

Mark Middlebrooks, a music director who knew the Joshua Komisarjevsky when he was 17 years old, asked jurors to spare the convicted killer’s life on Tuesday.

According to the Associated Press:

He said Komisarjevsky was in legal trouble at the time he joined the group, called the Continentals. But Middlebrooks said he felt "compelled and burdened" to accept him for the tour, a decision he never regretted.

"He responded so well to me and my leadership," Middlebrooks said. "We developed a trust. I didn't have to worry about Josh."

The Hartford Courant reported that Middlebrooks said the main reason Komisarjevsky should be spared is because he is a father.

"He has a daughter. He wishes he could change the circumstances for the sake of his daughter, for the family, and for all people adversely affected," Middlebrooks said, adding again that Komisarjevsky should be saved.

Update at 6:04 p.m. on Oct. 31

With Joshua Komisarjevsky facing death row, his family members continued testifying to jurors about the convicted killer’s troubled childhood. On Monday, his adopted sister Naomi Komisarjevsky, shared what it was like growing up with Joshua.

Naomi recalled having fun with her brother and playing games as a child. But according to the Hartford Courant, the childhood darkened when Joshua sexually molested her when she was 12. Things worsened for Joshua as time went on.

According to the Courant:

"He was angry at God, angry at me, angry at his father, angry at the world, really," Naomi Komisarjevsky said.

She said her brother had thrived in the army but regressed afterward, lapsing into drug use.

According to the U.K. newspaper Daily Mail, his mother, Jude, suspected that Joshua was “up to no good” on the night of the 2007 murders “because he was wearing a hooded sweatshirt he used in the past to commit burglaries.”

The Daily Mail reported that when she heard of the fire and deaths, she thought her son could be involved.