Crime & Safety

Sister: Komisarjevsky Had 'Angry' Childhood

Joshua Komisarjevsky was found guilty on all counts in the home invasion that escalated to a triple murder, but whether he lives or dies remains to be seen.

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.

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According to the Courant:

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

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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.

Update at 9:45 p.m. on Oct. 27

Three decades before Joshua Komisarjevsky was a convicted murderer, he was a crying infant just adopted by his new mom. Jude Komisarjevsky retold the first encounter with her son to jurors on Thursday.

According to the Hartford Courant:

Defense attorney Todd Bussert showed Jude Komisarjevsky copies of journal pages she wrote in the months after the adoption. She smiled as she read the entries, including one that said, "Here was the Joshua we always wanted."

The day of the adoption, she recalled, little Joshua cried in her arms but was calm and quiet in the arms of his adopted father.

But trauma, including sexual abuse, made Joshua’s childhood an unhappy one. When the family took in another child, in addition to Joshua’s adopted younger sister, the new brother allegedly molested his siblings. Joshua also allegedly molested his sister. The Hartford Courant reported that Jude barely looked at her son sitting several feet away in the New Haven courtroom.

Update at 5:05 p.m. on Oct. 25

The penalty phase for jurors deciding the fate of convicted murder Joshua Komisarjevsky began today, and it could be weeks before a decision whether to send him to death row is reached.

At the courthouse in New Haven, the judge and the defense told jurors of the weight of their eventual decision. According to CNN:

"This grave and awesome decision will be made by you and you alone," Judge Jon Blue told the jury before giving them preliminary instructions as the trial began.

During an hourlong opening statement, the defense also reminded the jury of the heavy burden they bear.

"By your verdict, you're guaranteeing that Joshua will receive one of the two harshest penalties, life or death," Attorney Jeremiah Donovan said.

Earlier this month, Komisarjevsky was found guilty of all 17 counts from the brutal 2007 Cheshire home invasion that ended with three people dead. His accomplice, Steven Hayes, is on death row already.

Update at 12 p.m. on Oct. 24

The death penalty phase in the brutal Cheshire home invasion murders begins tomorrow. Joshua Komisarjevsky was earlier this month, and his accomplice Steven Hayes has already been sentenced to death.

According to WTNH:

When the jury returns to the courthouse it will mark the start of what will likely be weeks of testimony, as the defense tries to use Komisarjevsky's troubled childhood to keep him alive.

While the case will be made in court, those living around Cheshire seem to have their minds made up already.

Oct. 13 at 6 p.m.

Joshua Komisarjevsky of Cheshire was found guilty of all 17 counts against him this afternoon after jurors spent about eight hours deliberating over two days.

He faces the death penalty for the slayings in Cheshire of Jennifer Hawke-Petit and her two daughters, Michaela and Hayley in 2007.

His co-defendant in the case, Steven Hayes, received the death penalty last year for one of the country's worst home invasion crimes in history.

The penalty phase of the trial begins on Oct. 24.

Details of the 17 counts against Komisarjevsky can be seen in the PDF file included in the gallery with this article. View the document by selecting the page or by .

—Leslie Hutchinson contributed to this report.


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