Connecticut enacted its home invasion law in 2008. This followed the well publicized 2007 robbery and murder case in which the wife and two daughters of Dr. William Petit were killed. Last week, for just the third time since its passage, a defendant has been convicted under that law. Apparently, a contributing factor in the most recent case was the fact that a protective order was in force. There are questions about whether officials overcharged in the case.

The home invasion statutes says that someone found guilty of a felony charge while unlawfully in an occupied home will face a minimum 10 years in jail. The court can expand that to 25 years if it deems it to be warranted.

In the case at hand, a 59-year-old former resident of Norwalk had been accused of entering the building where he had shared an apartment with his former girlfriend for 15 years. He had been away for about 18 months because a job had taken him to another state.

After his return, it appears that there may have been some disagreement between the two because a week before the April 30, 2010, incident, the woman claimed he had threatened her. A judge imposed a protective order barring him from contacting her.

According to authorities, on the day of the incident, he waited for her in the laundry room of the building and when she appeared, he allegedly pulled a fake gun and demanded some money. They then went to the apartment. At one point the woman screamed. Neighbors called 911 and reported that they'd seen a gun. The man eventually gave himself up after a 90-minute standoff.

After a day of deliberations, a six-person jury found the man guilty of an array of charges that included home invasion, first-degree burglary, possession of a facsimile gun, interference with a 911 call, violation of a protective order and second-degree unlawful restraint. They acquitted him of attempted first-degree robbery and third-degree assault.

Questions about the legitimacy of the charges of home invasion and protective order violation were raised by the defense during the trial and the man's attorney has indicated that an appeal will be made on a number of the convictions.

Source: Stanford Advocate, "Man found guilty of home invasion," John Nickerson, Dec. 14, 2011