UPDATE: 11:45am EST
Arapahoe County prosecutors and Judge William Sylvester charged James Holmes with 24 counts of first degree murder and 116 counts of attempted murder on Monday; 142 counts in all.
Holmes was charged with 12 counts of first-degree murder, 12 counts of murder with extreme indifference.
The is Holmes’ second hearing 11 days after he allegedly went on a shooting rampage that left 12 people dead and dozens wounded.
Holmes also faces 1 count of sentence enhancement criminal violence, and 1 count of posession of an explosive device.
No cameras were allowed in the courtroom, but reports from the courtroom say that Holmes seemed more alert and groomed.
Holmes was asked if he agreed to waive his right to a preliminary hearing within 35 days. He responded “yes.” That was the only time he spoke.
Holmes has a preliminary hearing set for Nov. 12.
To read the complete 72 pages of all charges, click here.
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Colorado prosecutors are filing formal charges Monday against James Holmes, the suspected gunman accused of killing 13 people and wounding 58 others at an Aurora movie theater two weeks ago.
STORY: So Sad! James Holmes Responsible For A 13th Victim!
According to the Associated Press:
Attorneys also are arguing over a defense motion to find out who leaked information to the news media about a package the 24-year-old former neuroscience graduate student allegedly sent to his psychiatrist at the University of Colorado Denver.
Authorities seized the package July 23, three days after the shooting, after finding it in the mailroom of the medical campus where Holmes studied. Several media outlets reported that it contained a notebook with descriptions of an attack, but Arapahoe County District Attorney Carol Chambers said in court papers that the parcel hadn’t been opened by the time the “inaccurate” news reports appeared.
Holmes allegedly began stockpiling gear for his assault four months ago, and authorities say he bought his weapons in May and June, well before the shooting spree just after midnight during a showing of the Batman film “”The Dark Knight Rises.” He was arrested by police outside the theater.
Under Colorado law, defendants are not legally liable for their acts if their minds are so “diseased” that they cannot distinguish between right and wrong. However, the law warns that “care should be taken not to confuse such mental disease or defect with moral obliquity, mental depravity, or passion growing out of anger, revenge, hatred, or other motives, and kindred evil conditions.”
Insanity will most likely be the plea from Holmes’ lawyers. They could argue he is not mentally competent to stand trial, much like Jared Loughner, who killed six people when he shot at Arizona Rep. Gabrielle Giffords in Tucson in 2011.
If Holmes’ attorneys cannot convince the court that he is mentally incompetent, and he is convicted, they can try to stave off a possible death penalty by arguing he is mentally ill. Prosecutors will decide whether to seek the death penalty in the coming weeks.
Holmes was not expected to enter pleas on Monday.
SOURCE: AP
