The 24 year old James Eagan Holmes who was the only accused in the mass shooting in the Aurora theater that was screening the Dark Knight Rises was presented before the courthouse for the first hearing on Monday. The man who had a completely different appearance in the theatre with the gas mask and a completely armored fittings appeared had presented himself looking drowsy and looked indifferent with the unruly hair dyed in different shades of red and orange.
He had been arrested by the police immediately after the ghastly shootings without any resistance from his side. During the short period of the court's hearing he appeared to be groggy and looked only straight ahead. He was occasionally drooping while closing his eyes. He had been bound by shackles at both his hands and legs.
Holmes was restricted in solitary confinement to prevent him from the other prisoners. 40 members who were related to the victims were on the left side of the court.
He remained silent even when the Arapahoe County district Judge William Sylvester had questioned Holmes and his attorney had answered for him.
The victims included war veterans, an sportscaster who recently escaped a shooting in a mall in Toronto and unfortunately couldn't survive this incident and a 6 year old girl.
58 others were wounded with most of them surviving serious injuries.
Holmes was highly educated with a neuroscience student formerly. He had rigged his house before he left for the shooting. The police have detonated his traps carefully. They also said that if it was not controlled he could have demolished the whole apartment easily.
His roommates were extremely confused as to find a cause that triggered him to act this way. They sought assistance from the FBI's behavioral analysis unit.
QUIET HIGH-ACHIEVER
Holmes, a former neuroscience student, also left his apartment booby-trapped with explosives that authorities said could have destroyed the apartment complex. They conducted a controlled detonation over the weekend. They provided the details of his past but there was nothing that pointed out to such outrageous violence in the past.
Arapahoe County District Attorney Carol Chambers said she would consult with the wounded victims and families of the dead before making a decision on seeking the death penalty but the charges would be filed in the next hearing on Monday. He also said that the death penalty should be made in less than 2 months of his arraignment.
Holmes can be charged for numerous cases under the Colorado's law which include premeditation, multiple victims, killing a child among others. Craig Silverman a former prosecutor in Denver said that Denver can drop the death penalty law from the book if Holmes was not executed pointing out the gravity of the shootings.
(AW- Anil)
