Burglar convicted in brutal slayings of mom, daughters

NEW HAVEN, Conn. - A paroled burglar was convicted yesterday of murdering a woman and her two daughters during a night of terror in which the mother was strangled and the girls were tied to their beds, one doused in gasoline, before the house was set on fire.

Steven Hayes, 47, could be sentenced to death. His attorneys have admitted his involvement and will argue for a life sentence.

Prosecutors said Hayes and another ex-con broke into the family's house in Cheshire in 2007, beat the girls' father with a baseball bat and forced their mother, Jennifer Hawke-Petit, to withdraw money from a bank before she was sexually assaulted and killed. Michaela, 11, and Hayley, 17, were tied to their beds, with pillowcases over their heads and killed by the gas-fueled fire, authorities said.

The crime drew comparisons to "In Cold Blood," Truman Capote's chilling book about the 1959 murders of a Kansas family, and prompted more Cheshire residents to get guns. It also led to tougher laws for repeat offenders and home invasions, and Connecticut Gov. M. Jodi Rell cited the case when she vetoed a bill that would have abolished the death penalty.

The lone survivor, Dr. William Petit, appeared to stifle tears as the verdict was read. "There is some relief but my family is still gone," Petit said afterward.

Hayes showed no emotion as he stood for the verdict, which triggers the trial's second phase, beginning Oct. 18, in which the same jurors will decide whether Hayes should be executed.

Hayes' defense blamed his co-defendant, Joshua Komisarjevsky, for escalating the violence.

He faces trial next year and also could be sentenced to death. - AP