Petit Family murders. trial coverage, warning! graphic evidence photos.

[HairOfTheDog]

William Petit was elected to the Connecticut House of Representatives last month.

Petit's name recognition made his candidacy instant news statewide and beyond. Political science experts said it wiped out the edge that incumbency usually provides and skewed the normal dynamics of races between a veteran lawmaker and a first-time candidate.

Petit has been a household name in Connecticut since the 2007 home invasion, which in addition to killing his family, left Petit beaten and bloodied.

Media outlets tracked his recovery, his attendance at the trials of the two men who ultimately were convicted and sentenced to death, the creation of a foundation to honor his family, his remarriage in 2012, the birth of a son in 2013, his opposition to the state's scrapping of the death penalty, and the re-sentencing of his family's murderers, as well as all other death-row inmates in Connecticut, to life in prison with without parole.

But as a state House candidate, Petit didn't make any of this an issue, nor did his incumbent competitor, 73-year-old Elizabeth Boukus (D), who had held the seat since 1994. The campaigns focused on taxes, jobs, state budget woes, and other issues.

Petit, 60, is a member of a well-known Plainville family. His father ran a popular general store for years, served on the school board, and was on the Connecticut Republican Party state central committee.

http://www.courant.com/politics/election...story.html