(NECN: New Haven, Conn.) - After eight days of testimony and a day of deliberations, a jury in New Haven, Connecticut has found a paroled burglar guilty in the murder of a mother and her two daughters in the town of Cheshire in 2007.
Steven Hayes was found guilty Tuesday of capital felony murder in the July 2007 deaths of Jennifer Hawke-Petit and her daughters, 17-year-old Hayley and 11-year-old Michaela.
Jurors had begun deliberating Monday afternoon. The same jury must now decide whether Hayes should be executed or be sentenced to life in prison.
Hayes was convicted of 16 counts and acquitted of a single count - arson. Hayes' defense conceded his involvement in the fatal home invasion but blamed his co-defendant, Joshua Komisarjevsky, for being the aggressor. Komisarjevsky faces trial next year. He also faces the death penalty.
Material from the Associated Press is included in this report.
