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Crime & Safety

Komisarjevsky Loses Bid to Avoid Capital Murder Trial; Third Juror Chosen

Lawyers select a third juror on Wednesday, a social work investigator who is employed by the state.

The first graph should be changed to read:Accused Cheshire home invasion killer Joshua Komisarjevsky has lost his bid to plead guilty and avoid a trial which could lead to the death penalty.

Superior Court Judge Roland Fasano issued a terse, three-sentence ruling in New Haven today denying a motion filed on March 11 by Komisarjevsky’s defense lawyers.

"This court is not inclined to grant defendant’s request to impose a ‘court indicated’ sentence of life imprisonment without the possibility of parole or release following a conditional plea of guilty to all counts, even assuming the court had the power to do so," Judge Fasano’s ruling said.

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The defense motion had argued that Komisarjevsky had not intended to kill anyone, and that the murders were actually committed by his co-defendant, Steven Hayes.

Hayes was convicted in a separate trial in 2010 and is on death row.

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Also on Wednesday, defense lawyers and prosecutors accepted another juror, bringing the total selected to three since jury selection began a week ago.

Judge Jon C. Blue, the trial judge, said the attorneys need to select 12 jurors, six alternate jurors and three backup alternates for the trial that he scheduled to start on Sept. 19.

The third juror is employed as a social work investigator for the state. A doctor employed by Yale Medical School and a student pursuing a degree in social work and criminal justice are the two others.

The New Haven Register published a story today that said two prospective jurors were excused on Tuesday after they refused to sit in the courtroom with Komisarjevsky.

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