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| James Holmes, Aurora theater shooting suspect, sits in the courtroom during his arraignment in Centennial, Colo., on Tuesday, March 12, 2013. Judge William Blair Sylvester entered a not guilty plea on behalf of James Holmes on Tuesday after the former graduate student's defense team said he was not ready to enter one. |
CENTENNIAL, Colo.
(AP) -- A bearded and bushy-haired James Holmes sat quietly as a
packed courtroom waited Tuesday for a plea that could help shed light on
a deadly shooting rampage he is accused of going on in a crowded
Colorado movie theater last summer.
Instead,
his lawyers told the judge they weren't ready to enter a plea - despite
numerous delays since the July 20 attack that killed 12 people and
injured 70 at a midnight showing of "The Dark Knight Rises."
A barely audible gasp rose from dozens of family members and victims.
"So
how am I supposed to make an informed decision?" Judge William
Sylvester asked pointedly, his gaze fixed on defense lawyer Daniel King,
before the judge entered a not guilty plea on Holmes' behalf.
Victims were relieved by Sylvester's action.
"It's
been since July," said Marcus Weaver, who was shot in the arm and who
lost friend Rebecca Wingo in the attack. "We're just so thankful we're
able to move forward."
Legal experts said the
defense's statement may be part of a larger strategy to avoid the death
penalty. Holmes can still change his plea to not guilty by reason of
insanity, and he can wait to do so until after prosecutors announce
whether they will seek the death penalty.
"This
just allows the defense to think through how they want to proceed,"
said Dan Recht, a Denver defense attorney who is following the case.
"The odds are the prosecution is going to pursue the death penalty and
literally Holmes' life is at stake, so they want to be able to think
through all the pleas they can offer."
That
makes it easier for the defense to plan its best case. Holmes could
plead insanity and would wind up in a mental hospital indefinitely - and
would never face execution - if the jury finds in his favor.
Holmes
could also simply plead innocent, and he wouldn't have to give
prosecutors potentially incriminating medical records and statements
made to doctors.
Attorneys on both sides left
Tuesday's hearing without commenting. They are under orders from the
judge not to speak about the case.
As he has
done in past hearings, Holmes sat silently through the proceedings. He
wore a red jail jumpsuit and sported a thick, bushy beard and unkempt
dark brown hair. When he walked into the courtroom, he looked at his
parents, Robert and Arlene Holmes. They sat silently at the front of the
room and left without comment after the hearing.
Prosecutors
say Holmes planned the assault for months, casing the theater complex
in Aurora, amassing a small arsenal and rigging potentially deadly
booby-traps in his apartment.
Then he donned a
police-style helmet and body armor, tossed a gas canister into the
theater crowd and opened fire, prosecutors said.
Nearly
eight months later, the defense has dropped hints about Holmes' mental
state but has given no clear statement on whether he would plead
insanity.
Holmes, a former graduate student at
the University of Colorado, Denver, had seen a psychiatrist at the
school before the shootings.
Last week, his
lawyers revealed that he was taken to a hospital psychiatric ward in
November because he was considered a threat to himself. Holmes was held
there for several days and spent much of the time in restraints.
Tuesday,
there was another clue. At one point, in saying they weren't ready to
enter a plea, King said, "We have ongoing work scheduled. We're doing
the best that we can."
King said he couldn't
reveal what the work was, or say when it would be finished. But he did
hint that the defense might have its own expert conduct a mental
evaluation of Holmes. He said that if Holmes pleads not guilty by reason
of insanity, the court would have to order a state mental evaluation,
and "whatever evaluations we're doing would be truncated."
The
next step in the case comes April 1, when prosecutors announce their
decision on the death penalty. The judge scheduled the trial to start
Aug. 5, setting aside four weeks.
Whether and
when Holmes will change his plea remains uncertain. His lawyers would
have to ask the judge to set a hearing for a new plea.
