Aurora shooting suspect shows no emotion in court

Colorado shooting suspect James Holmes, 24, appears in court on July 23, 2012.

(AP) CENTENNIAL, Colo. - The suspect in the Aurora movie shooting showed no emotion in court Thursday as a lawyer discussed a charity's efforts to help victims.

James Holmes attended a brief procedural hearing in his case in which the prosecution sought the judge's permission to release contact information for the victims to a charity, Giving First, that has raised $4 million for victims. Most documents in the case have been sealed, so even that step required Judge William Sylvester's approval.

"People have been incapacitated or lost family members and are in dire financial straits," prosecutor Rich Orman said.

Holmes was wide-eyed but didn't show any reaction. He mostly looked ahead but glanced at Orman a few times.

During the half-hour hearing, Holmes looked around the room and straight ahead but didn't focus on whoever was speaking. However, he did appear to be paying attention to the proceedings. He furrowed his brow when some in the courtroom laughed about a quip regarding the trustworthiness of using the U.S. Postal Service to notify each other of actions. When someone entered the hearing late, Holmes looked toward the door.

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Also during the hearing, the University of Colorado, where Holmes was a graduate student, turned in 100 pages of documents requested by the prosecution, but one of Holmes' lawyers, Tamara Brady, objected to the judge reading them. The prosecution wants access to the documents to help them make their case that a notebook Holmes sent to University of Colorado psychiatrist Lynne Fenton should be allowed into evidence. It reportedly contains descriptions of a violent attack.

Sylvester said he would take up the issue of whether he could view the documents on Aug. 23, pushing back scheduled arguments over whether prosecutors can have access to the notebook for yet another week.

Holmes' other lawyer, Daniel King, said in court last week that Holmes had sought out Fenton for help with his mental illness and the notebook's contents are protected by doctor-patient privilege.

Holmes is accused of killing 12 people and injuring 58 others in the July 20 attack. Police said he methodically stockpiled guns, ammunition and material for explosives for months and that he received shipments at both the university and his nearby apartment. Legal analysts widely believe Holmes' mental health will be key to his defense, and Fenton may testify in court.

The university's website identifies Fenton as medical director of its Student Mental Health Services. An online resume said she sees 10 to 15 graduate students a week for medication and psychotherapy, as well as five to 10 patients in her general practice as a psychiatrist.

Holmes enrolled in a doctoral program in neuroscience at the University of Colorado-Denver Anschutz medical campus in June 2011. He left without explanation a month before he is accused of donning riot gear and opening fire on the audience during a midnight showing of the new Batman movie.

The public defenders' office was appointed to represent Holmes in the hours after the shooting at his family's request, according to court documents released earlier this week.

Holmes' lawyers are members of the public defender's capital cases team, which represents people in death penalty cases. District Attorney Carol Chambers has said she is considering pursuing the death penalty.

Colorado defense attorney David Lane, who has been involved in a number of death penalty cases, said there is no issue with the public defenders' abilities.

"Colorado public defenders are the best death penalty lawyers in the United States," Lane said.

[14FREEK]

Add to this postion, these mass killers are readily being deemed mentally unfit; however, this is coming up after the fact. THIS IS THE PROBLEM : IDENTIFYING THE CRAZY PEOPLE. and in almost every case there were clues beforehand, mostly noted by family members, and most often the mother. HOLY Freudappola!!! Whoda thunk it???

[14FREEK]

RESTRICTIONS. WRONG! WRONG! WRONG! I have to express my displeasure with restrictions on CCW laws that prohibit weapons at places of worship, especially in this case because the priest tried to defend himself (and his congregation) with a knife he carried. Had he been carrying a pistol none of these people would be dead or injured except the attacker. FYI as the senior pastor of that church/temple/synagogue he had every legal right to carry a handgun regardless of the CCW laws or to assign or approve specific individuals to be armed if they have a CCW permit.

Also, if the theater in Aurora had not restricted the patrons from their constitutional and state sanctioned right to carry their lawfully owned and licensed handguns the damage that night at the batman movie WOULD have been significantly mitigated NO MATTER WHAT THE LIBERAL PRESS WANTS TO PORTRAY. I GUARANTEE IT. Of 200 patrons, someone could have hit him at the very least. He was standing alone (movie patrons were running AWAY FROM HIM IN EVERY DIRECTION) in heavy gear with a shotgun and an AR-15 in his hands - he would be the easiest target to hit of every shooter delight. one or even two smoke canisters would not fill the theater so much that someone would not have seen him, they saw him enough to escape FROM his direction. Those whiners who harp on the tear gas must have never experienced tear gas. I have experienced tear gas in a small room filled, I mean filled with tear gas and you have as long as you can hold your breath before you have to breath it and when you do it does not knock you out. however while you are holding your breath that is enough time to spot and zero in on the attacker and shoot him several times.

I carry a 357 mag that would have stopped him. A IIIa Kevlar vest stops bullets that travel up to 1400 feet per second (fps). A 357 and a 45 can fire rounds in excess of that speed. and if they did not kill him they would have knocked him down and with all that gear on and the pain he would have felt (even if the vest had stopped the bullets, bullets traveling that fast hurt like hell. One round can bruise a persons entire chest) he would have a very difficult time getting back on his feet if he could at all. THE END.

[14FREEK]

Guns don't kill people, poeple kill people; and crazy people kill a lot of people.

[betterusa]

"The suspect", is not a suspect but the actual killer. Quit referring to this POS as a suspect. He is guilty and planned this killing spree with complete mental faculties. Stop wasting taxpayer money and execute him; he might then show emotion when strapped to the table.

[lillyhorton]

I wonder how he got into the theater. The door automatically locks on the out side. Someone let him in.

[magnumdr]

This guy really don't care. He is a cold blodded killer.

[AnnieDanny]

I have to agree that this was especially cold and heartless, due to the advance planning. I don't understand it, can't wrap my head around it, WHY anybody would do this - but I don't think he's insane.

I wonder why that school counselor didn't report it when she got his notebook: shouldn't something like that be reported?

[voxpopulus]

He's faking it. You don't function more-or-less normally before a well-planned massacre and then lose it completely when you appear in court. The police said he was one of the most intelligent criminals they had ever encountered. He knows EXACTLY what he is doing.

[baileycccc]

No more ink for this loser, just convict him and end his miserable life.