USA - Connecticut. A jury sentenced Steven J. Hayes, 47, white, to death

A jury sentenced Steven J. Hayes, 47, white, to death for killing 3 members of a family in a July 23, 2007. home invasion. In Connecticut the verdict must be a unanimous. The victims were: Hayley Petit, 17, Michaela Petit, 11, and their mother, Jennifer Hawke-Petit, 48. Judge Jon C. Bluehas yet to officially impose the sentence. Only 1 person has been executed in Connecticut in the last 50 years. A serial killer, Michael Ross, was executed in 2005 after he decided to forgo further appeals, but he was the first inmate executed in New England since 1960. Co-defendant Joshua Komisarjevsky is expected to be tried next year.