CENTENNIAL, Colo. — Opening statements have begun in the long-awaited death penalty trial of Colorado movie theater shooter James Holmes.
Holmes has pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity to killing 12 people and injuring 70 when he opened fire at a midnight showing of a Batman movie in suburban Denver.
The July 20, 2012, mass shooting was one of America’s deadliest.
Holmes’ attorneys say he was in the throes of a psychotic episode and couldn’t tell right from wrong.
But prosecutors allege he planned the violence for months, amassing an arsenal that included guns, tear gas and body armor. They say he also stockpiled chemicals to rig his apartment into a potentially lethal booby trap.
The trial comes after attorneys and a judge spent 2½ years hashing out legal questions and selecting a jury.
Here’s a timeline of events from the first day of trial:
12:15 p.m. (MDT)
Opening statements have started in the long-awaited death penalty trial of Colorado movie theater shooter James Holmes.
The prosecutor showed a picture of the door to the theater. “Through this door are bullets, blood, brains and bodies,” he said. He played a 911 call.
Judge Carlos A. Samour Jr. says each side has two hours for opening statements. The defense can make opening statement now or later.
Holmes has pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity to killing 12 people and injuring 70 when he opened fire at a midnight showing of a Batman movie in suburban Denver. The July 20, 2012, mass shooting was one of America’s deadliest.
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12:55 p.m. (MDT)
The judge in the Colorado theater shooting trial has dismissed jurors for a short break before opening statements begin.
Judge Carlos A. Samour Jr. has explained to jurors the importance of not discussing the trial with anyone, including each other. Opening statements are set to start after the break.
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12:45 p.m. (MDT)
The judge in the Colorado theater shooting trial is explaining to the jury that they must decide whether or not James Holmes was sane at the time of the attack.
Judge Carlos A. Samour Jr. explained to the 12 jurors, plus 12 alternates, the guidelines of an insanity plea. Samour says the defendant is presumed innocent and does not have to prove he was insane when the shooting occurred.
Instead, he says, the prosecution must prove that Holmes was not insane.
Holmes is sitting still and watching the judge. He has not appeared to react to what he says or talk to his attorneys.
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12:20 p.m. (MDT)
The judge in the Colorado theater shooting trial has started instructing the jury.
Judge Carlos A. Samour Jr. on Monday told jurors he has no opinion on the case and told them they can submit questions to him regarding witness testimony during the trial.
Samour also says jurors can take notes but they’re not allowed to take those notes home. He says the jurors’ notebooks will be destroyed at the end of the trial.
James Holmes acknowledges killing 12 people and wounding 70 more in a packed Aurora theater in July 2012, but he has pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity. His lawyers will argue he was too addled by mental illness to tell right from wrong.
Opening statements are set to begin later Monday.
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12 p.m. (MDT)
A judge has started addressing jurors in the Colorado theater shooting trial.
Judge Carlos A. Samour Jr. thanked jurors for being on time and told them he’s taken steps to ensure their privacy. He says he has ordered the media not to identify jurors or contact them or their friends or family members.
Samour earlier seated 12 jurors, plus 12 alternates who will replace any jurors who are dismissed for health or other reasons.
The 24 people will not know if they are jurors or alternates until deliberations are about to begin. At that point, the remaining alternates will be dismissed
Opening statements in James Holmes’ death penalty trial are set for later Monday.
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11:30 a.m. (MDT)
Some victims’ family members and survivors of the Colorado theater shooting have arrived at court in advance of opening statements in James Holmes’ trial.
They held hands as they took the elevator up to the courtroom in the Denver suburb of Centennial.
The group included Ian Sullivan, whose 6-year-old daughter, Veronica, was the youngest victim of the 2012 massacre, and Caleb Medley, who was shot in the head while on a date night at the Batman screening with his pregnant wife.
Medley’s wife gave birth to their baby in the same hospital where Medley was treated. The boy is his first child.
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11 a.m. (MDT)
Many of the people who attended a morning hearing in the trial of Colorado theater shooter James Holmes have dispersed while court is in recess, including Holmes’ parents.
The hearing at the Arapahoe County courthouse in suburban Denver was held to clear up last-minute requests from attorneys.
Opening statements in the death penalty trial are expected to start around 1 p.m. local time.
Meanwhile, work on other cases continued as usual Monday at the courthouse in Centennial. Court dockets show at least 100 other cases scheduled for the day.
Holmes acknowledges killing 12 people and wounding 70 more inside the packed theater, but he has pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity.
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10:30 a.m. (MDT)
Opening statements in the Colorado shooting trial will be given by District Attorney George Brauchler for the prosecution, and public defenders Daniel King and Katherine Spengler for the defense.
Brauchler said at the morning briefing that he’ll show graphic images during his presentation. He didn’t elaborate.
The trial is taking place in the Denver suburb of Centennial, where it was chilly and drizzling Monday morning.
A row of TV satellite trucks sat outside the courthouse. A half-dozen TV camera crews and more photojournalists watched as spectators including former Denver Fire Chief Larry Trujillo arrived.
Trujillo’s daughter, Taylor, was in the theater on July 20, 2012. She survived the shooting when a friend threw her to the floor.
Trujillo says his faith allows him to forgive. But he says that might be easy to say since his daughter survived.
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9:55 a.m. (MDT)
Court is in recess in the Colorado theater shooting case after a hearing to clear up last-minute requests.
James Holmes’ parents sat in the second row in the courtroom in the Denver suburb of Centennial. His mother, Arlene, took notes in a small purple notebook and Holmes read at the defense table. No victims’ families were at the hearing.
Prosecutors asked for access to records of jail visits by Holmes’ parents, experts and other people besides his legal team.
Holmes’ lawyers objected, but arguments on that issue were delayed until a later date.
Opening statements are expected to begin around 1 p.m. local time, after the judge addresses jurors.
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9:10 a.m. (MDT)
A hearing to take care of last-minute motions is underway in the death penalty trial of Colorado theater shooter James Holmes in suburban Denver.
Holmes is dressed in a blue shirt, khaki pants and no tie. At the start of a live video feed from the courtroom, he is seen standing behind the defense table with his hands in his pocket.
As in previous hearings, Holmes is tethered to the courtroom floor with a harness under his clothes, hidden from the jury’s view.
To the right of the judge’s bench is a table holding a roughly 4-foot by 6-foot object draped with a black cloth.
Among the evidence expected to be presented during the trial is an FBI model of the theater and photographs of the scene.
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8:25 a.m. (MDT)
The parents of Colorado theater shooter James Holmes have been seen waiting in line to get into the suburban Denver courthouse where Holmes’ long-awaited death penalty trial is getting underway.
Robert and Arlene Holmes of Rancho Penasquitos, California, have publicly pleaded for their son’s life to be spared through a plea bargain. They called him a “human being gripped by a severe mental illness.”
Shortly before their arrival, some TV reporters followed Lonnie and Sandy Phillips, the parents of shooting victim Jessica Ghawi, to the door of the Centennial courthouse, in violation of the strict ground rules for media coverage.
A woman in a suit came up and scolded them.
Opening statements in the 2012 shooting case are scheduled to begin Monday afternoon.
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7:50 a.m. (MDT)
A steady stream of people walked into the courthouse on a gray and drizzly morning on the opening day of the trial of James Holmes in the 2012 Colorado theater shooting.
They were dressed in suits and dresses, and jeans and sweatshirts. About 10 television satellite trucks were parked outside.
There were no deputies stationed at the roof as seen at previous hearings in the case at the courthouse in Centennial, south of Denver.
Holmes acknowledges killing 12 people and wounding 70 more a packed Aurora theater, but has pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity. His lawyers will argue he was too addled by mental illness to tell right from wrong.
