ARAPAHOE COUNTY — — Denver Post reporter Jordan Steffen’s updates from Day 49 of the Aurora theater shooting trial at the Arapahoe County Justice Center in Centennial, Colorado.
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Day 49
Nearly three months after they presented opening arguments, attorneys in the Aurora theater shooting trial will give their closing arguments on Tuesday.
Jurors are expected to get the case late Tuesday afternoon after a combined four hours of closing arguments by both sides.
Judge Carlos Samour Jr. will begin reading the jury instructions around 9 a.m. Those instructions — which were finalized on Monday — will help jurors decide their verdict on the 166 charges facing James Holmes.
Holmes, who faces the death penalty, has pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity. Closing arguments will provide jurors with a summary of both prosecutors and defense attorneys’ cases.
Arapahoe County District Attorney George Brauchler will present closing arguments for the prosecution. Prosecutors, who have the burden of proving sanity beyond a reasonable doubt, have argued that Holmes meticulously planned the attack that killed 12 people and injured 70 others on July 20, 2012. Two court-appointed forensic psychiatrists testified that Holmes was legally sane at the time of the attack.
Defense attorney Daniel King will present closing arguments for the defense team. Defense attorneys have argued that Holmes was so mentally ill that he was incapable of knowing right from wrong. Two psychiatrist hired by the defense testified that they found Holmes was legally insane at the time of the attack.
All four psychiatrist agreed that Holmes has severe mental illness.
Brauchler will get the last word with his rebuttal, after King has finished presenting his closings.
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LIVE: Watch the live feed of the trial
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8:53 a.m.
Before the jury was brought into the courtroom on Tuesday, Samour discussed the jury instructions, verdict forms and other issues with the attorneys.
“Let me run through a few things,” Samour said.
All of the discrepancies concerning how admitted exhibits were labeled have been resolved, Samour said. There are thousands of exhibits that the jury will have access to during their deliberations.
Those exhibits are in the courtroom today — including the model of the theater. Samour said all of the exhibits will go back with the jury with the exception of the live ammunition. Both the live ammunition and the guns cannot go back together.
Late Monday, Samour e-mailed a final set of jury instructions.
“It’s quite a document. It’s very voluminous,” Samour said.
The jury instructions and verdict forms are more than 600 pages.
Samour asked if the parties needed to discuss the jury instructions further.
Prosecutor Rich Orman asked if each individual verdict form will be stapled. He is concerned that the pages will get mixed up.
The verdict forms will be stapled. The sample verdict forms being sent back will be marked as such, Samour.
Defense attorney Kristen Nelson asked Samour to remind the jury about Holmes’ constitutional right not to testify. Samour said he would.
King then asked to approach the bench to discuss an issue. There was a short bench conference.
King said he and Brauchler are going through the PowerPoint slides they plan to use. If there are lengthy objections about the slides, Samour asked that the attorneys ask to approach the bench.
“If it’s something that is mild and short you can say it,” Samour said.
Samour then called for a short break. The jury will be brought in after the break.
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THE CHARGES: View the complete list of all 165 charges
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9:29 a.m.
After the break, Samour asked King and Brauchler to approach so they could complete the record on a motion.
Once the bench conference was finished, Samour asked to have the jury brought in.
Samour welcomed the jury.
“I hope you got some rest over the long weekend you got,” Samour said.
The judge reminded the jury that there are 165 charges in the case. There is a verdict form for each count. Samour has randomly selected five sample jury forms and marked them as such. He will go through those five sample forms with the jury.
“There are five types of verdict forms,” Samour said.
There are two charges for each deceased victim — first-degree murder after deliberation and first-degree murder with extreme indifference.
There are also two charges for each wounded victim — attempted first-degree murder after deliberation and attempted first-degree murder with extreme indifference.
Prosecutors are presenting two different theories.
The sample forms look at each of the murder and attempted murder charge and the count of possession of an explosive or incendiary devices.
Each jury has a notebook and they were allowed to take notes. Samour reminded the jurors that the notes are to be used only to refresh the jurors’ memories.
A question was submitted by the jury, but Samour said he would let the attorneys address it in their closing arguments. Samour then asked his staff to distribute the verdict forms to each juror.
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DOCUMENTS: The instructions to the jury have been released
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9:40 a.m.
Samour asked the jury to follow along as he read the jury instructions. There are 31 instructions.
The admonishments the judge gave the jury are different from the ones he was providing during trial. Jurors are not allowed to communicate with anyone outside the courthouse during deliberations. They are not allowed to discuss anything about the case.
Jurors are not allowed to talk about the case with their family members and friends. They are only allowed to tell people that they are on a jury concerning a case that will be completed by the end of August.
Researching the case — at the courthouse or at home — is prohibited. Jurors are not allowed to read, watch or listen to any media reports concerning the trial. They are not allowed to speak with any members of the media.
Samour reminded the jurors that they are not to have any contact with the dismissed jurors or the alternate jurors during deliberations.
Cell phones and other electronic devices are not allowed in the deliberation room.
The case may only be discussed when all 12 jurors are present in the jury room. Deliberations may only happen in the jury room.
“No single instruction includes all the law that must be applied,” Samour said.
Samour reminded the jurors that they are not allowed to consider answers to questions that were given after an objection was sustained.
The second instruction tells jurors that the charges against Holmes are not evidence.
The next instruction states that every person charged with a crime is presumed innocent. The burden of proof is on the prosecution. They must prove all of the necessary elements.
The number of witnesses testifying for or against a fact do not prove or disprove a fact.
The fifth instruction reminds jurors that they alone are responsible for evaluating a witness’ testimony and credibility.
Number six, jurors are not bound by an expert witness’ testimony.
“The weight you give the testimony is entirely your decision,” Samour said.
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9:56 a.m.
The next instruction deals with circumstantial and direct evidence.
Instruction eight outlines evidence that was admitted for a limited purpose. Next, Samour reminds the jury that a defendant’s decision not to testify does not prove anything.
Each count should be considered separately, Samour said. The verdict on one count, should not affect the jury’s deliberations on other charges.
The 11th instruction lists the names of the 12 victims who were killed during the attack. There is a count of first-degree murder after deliberation for each victim. In order for the jury to find Holmes guilty of one of those counts, the jury also has to find that he was not insane.
Instruction 12 tells the jurors that if they do not think there is enough evidence to prove the first-degree murder after deliberation, they may also find him guilty of second-degree murder or manslaughter. The jury cannot find Holmes guilty of all three counts.
The 13th instruction lists all 12 victims again. It also lists the first-degree murder with extreme indifference charge connected to each of them. Those counts require the jury to find that Holmes acted with malice and great indifference to others.
Instruction 14 lists the lesser included counts connected to the first-degree murder with extreme indifference counts. If the jury finds there is not enough evidence to prove that count they may find him guilty of second-degree murder or manslaughter.
Again, Holmes cannot be found guilty of all the three different charges.
“You should bear in mind that the burden is always on the prosecution,” Samour read. The law does not require defendants to call witnesses or present evidence.
Instruction 15 lists all of the 70 people who were wounded in the attack. An attempted first-degree murder after deliberation count is linked to each of the victims.
It takes Samour several minutes to read each of the names.
To find Holmes guilty of the attempted first-degree murder after deliberation charge, the jury must find that Holmes was not insane.
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10:15 a.m.
If the jury does not find Holmes guilty of attempted first-degree murder after deliberation, they may find him guilty of the lesser offense of attempt to commit second-degree murder or attempted manslaughter. Again, they must find that Holmes was not insane if they find him guilty of these charges.
Instruction 17 explains the attempt to commit first-degree murder with extreme indifference charges. Again, Holmes faces 70 counts of this charge — one for every person wounded in the attack.
Samour reads each the names of each wounded survivor. The attorneys fidget in their seats and take notes while Samour reads the names. Holmes sits still while he listens to the judge.
The elements of that charge require the jury find that Holmes “knowingly engaged in conduct constituting a substantial step toward” committing murder. If they find him guilty of all the elements, Samour tells the jury that they should find Holmes guilty.
If the jury finds that the prosecution failed to prove those counts beyond a reasonable doubt they should find Holmes not guilty.
Instruction 18 details the lesser offenses the jury may consider if they find the prosecution did not prove the charge of attempt to commit first-degree with extreme indifference. Those charges are attempt to commit second-degree murder and attempted manslaughter. Again, they cannot find Holmes guilty of these charges unless they also find that he was not insane.
The 19th instruction details the single charge of possession of an explosive or incendiary devices. That charge requires the jury to find that Holmes knowingly set up the devices and was not insane when he did so.
Instruction 20 explains culpable mental state and “voluntary mental act.” Voluntary mental act refers to someone who is aware of their actions and have the ability to stop themselves.
The applicable mental states in this case include after deliberation — an act that is never hasty or impulsive. The person’s intent is required to show this mental state. A person acts knowingly when he is aware that “his conduct is practically certain to cause a result.”
Instruction 21 explains definitions for deadly weapon and incendiary devices and other terms. Samour offers the jury definitions specifically related to guns and other chemicals and equipment used to create an explosive.
Incendiary devices do not include kerosene lamps, he said. Explosive and incendiary devices do not include shotgun devices.
The instruction also includes definitions for victims and person.
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10:31 a.m.
The 22nd instruction details the defense’s theory. The instruction says Holmes acknowledges that he planned the attack, but he did so under a delusion. He suffered a mental break in the spring of 2012 and had it not been for his mental illness there would not have been an attack.
Instruction 23 outlines the plea of not guilty by reason of insanity — including the legal definition.
The prosecution has to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that Holmes was sane at the time of the attack, Samour said. If the jury finds that the prosecution failed to prove that Holmes was sane the jury must find the defendant not guilty by reason of insanity.
The 24th instruction outlines the legal standard for the phrase, “incapable of distinguishing right from wrong.”
The next instruction is an informational instruction only. If Holmes is found not guilty by reason of insanity, it will be the judge’s duty to place him in the custody of the Department of Human Services. If Holmes is ever eligible for release, a judge will have to decide whether Holmes is dangerous to himself or others.
If Holmes is found not guilty by reason of insanity, he will never be tried again for the attack.
Instruction 26 explains how the jury should fill out the verdict forms, specifically the portion on the form concerning whether the jury made their decision based on Holmes’ mental state.
The 27th instruction applies to the lesser included offense for the murder and attempted murder counts. The instruction details how the jury should fill out a verdict form if they find Holmes guilty of any of the lesser counts.
Instruction 28 talks about questions submitted by jurors for witnesses. Samour tells the jury that if he did not read a question submitted by a juror it was the result of the rules of law and specific evidence. He tells them not to give weight to the questions that weren’t read.
Next, Samour explains how the jury may submit questions during deliberations. Similar to trial, not all of the questions submitted may be allowable.
Samour then asked the jury to follow along with him as he goes over the sample verdict forms. He uses the verdict form for Jonathan Blunk to show the jury how to fill out a form for the first-degree murder after deliberation charges.
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10:51 a.m.
The next verdict form is also related to Blunk. This form was used as a sample to show how the jury should fill out a verdict form for the charge of first-degree murder with extreme indifference.
The verdict forms ask the jurors to consider each element of the charges. They will have to mark on the forms whether or not the prosecution proved all of the elements.
Samour uses the verdict form connected to Petra Hogan to demonstrate how to fill out the form for the charge of attempted first-degree murder after deliberation.
The verdict forms include the lesser offenses for each of the original counts. For each count, the jury will have to mark whether they decide Holmes used a deadly weapon.
Samour also used the form connected to Hogan to demonstrate how to fill out a verdict form for the charge of attempted first-degree murder with extreme indifference. Again, the verdict form includes all of the elements needed to prove each count and the lesser included counts.
As the last example, Samour uses the verdict form for the charge of possession of an explosive or incendiary device.
There are no lesser offenses included in this count.
Next, Samour asked the jury to turn to the final instruction.
Instruction 30 details how the jurors are to select a foreperson. The foreperson will be responsible for signing the final verdict forms. If the jury finds Holmes guilty of any of the charged offenses or lesser counts the jury should disregard the portion of the verdict forms that asks whether they reached their conclusion based on Holmes’ mental state.
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11:03 a.m.
Jurors must fill out all of the verdict forms before they tell the judge they have reached a verdict.
The jury must fill out a verdict form for each of the 165 charged offenses. They cannot draw any inferences from the forms that Samour used as examples.
Samour asked the jury not to mark on the original set of instructions. They will each be provided a copy of the instructions, but they are not allowed to take the instructions back with them until the judge tells them that they can begin deliberating.
Samour will announce the alternate jurors before deliberations begin. After he announces the alternates, their notebooks will be collected and locked up until a verdict is reached.
The judge then released the jurors for a 20 to 30 minute break.
After the jury was out of the courtroom, King told the judge that he has concerns about the slides Brauchler wants to use during his closings.
“Having been handed this I’m frankly a little shocked at what I am seeing,” King said.
The slides are not a conventional use of demonstrative exhibits, King said. King said his own slides presented a summary to complement his arguments.
Brauchler’s PowerPoint include 859 slides, he said. It contains exhibits and arguments — some of which are concerning to King. King gave Samour a copy of the PowerPoint presentation to review during break.
Some of the slides talk about “deceit,” which King said violates the court’s order to leave Holmes’ credibility up to the jury.
“There has been no testimony of Mr. Holmes deceiving anyone,” King said. “What this is, Your Honor, is Mr. Brauchler commenting on the credibility of Mr. Holmes.”
It is improper for Brauchler to express his personal beliefs during closing arguments, King said.
His next objection has to do with slides related to defense experts that were called. They claim the experts “changed their practice to suit the attorneys.”
“Your Honor, that’s not true,” King said.
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11:18 a.m.
King’s third objection has to do with slides that refer to “impression management.” Again, King called the slides commentary by Brauchler.
Other slides include statements like, “Look how philosophical I am” and “Look how deep I am” that appear to be applied to Holmes. But Holmes has never made those statements, King said.
Statements Holmes did make doctors about what happened inside the theater are placed on different slides. Those statements do not have anything to do with the heart of the case and are not allowed under the law, King said.
King also objects to slides that he says misrepresent the work done by defense experts. Other slides relate to the concept of guilt and not sanity, King said.
“It’s quite clear that is not what these arguments are not going to be,” King said.
King apologized for causing a delay, but he said he may need to make further objections to these slides.
Brauchler responded by saying there is nothing improper about argument-based slides in closings.
“There is no way to describe all the steps the defendant took to mislead or deceive people,” Brauchler said. “I never once come out and call the defendant a liar.”
Brauchler said his representations of the defense experts are fair and represent testimony that was made in front of the jury.
“There are no low blows or cheap shots here,” Brauchler said.
Samour pointed out the statements concerning “Look how deep I am.” Brauchler said those are not direct quotes — there are no quotations around them. Those are part of his argument concerning the notebook.
Next Samour asked about the statements Holmes made about what happened inside the theater.
Brauchler said those statements speak to the defendant’s mental capacity. They highlight “what he knows, what he’s capable of,” Brauchler said.
A quote speaks about “prosecutors seeking justice” for those who were wronged. Samour asked how that quote will be applied.
Brauchler said it is intended to show that Holmes knew his actions were wrong during the shooting.
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11:21 a.m.
One of Brauchler’s slides is meant to speak about Holmes’ theory on “collateral damage,” meaning the people wounded inside the theater. The slide includes a photograph of one of the injured victims.
Again, Brauchler said the slide goes toward Holmes’ sanity. He argued that his slides about Holmes’ “head-to-toe” body armor do the same.
Samour said he will take a break to review the slides. Court will resume when Samour is finished.
The judge stepped down.
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12:02 p.m.
After the break, Samour came back into the courtroom.
The judge decided to have the jury go to lunch. The prosecution’s closing arguments will begin after lunch.
Samour said he is not done reviewing the slides.
“I’m going to need a little more time,” Samour said.
If Samour decides the prosecution needs to remove some slides that will slow down the proceedings. Samour said he will bring the jury in and see how late they can stay.
The jury was brought into the courtroom.
The judge asked if the jury could stay past 5 p.m.
“Is there anyone here who is not able to stay as late as six?” Samour asked.
No one raised their hand.
Samour then released the jury for an hour-long lunch break. He reminded them to follow his instructions during the lunch break.
“You may be tempted to want to start thinking about the case,” Samour said. “You need to resist that temptation.”
The jury then left the courtroom.
After the jury was out of the courtroom, Samour told the attorneys he needed another 15 minutes to review the slides. Around 12:15 p.m. Samour will come back and he will rule on the slides.
The attorneys will only get half an hour for lunch.
The judge stepped down.
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12:52 p.m.
Samour then went through the specific objections that were raised.
The first objection was to slides that refer to Holmes “deceiving” people. One slide is problematic, Samour said. That slide reads, “He deceives everyone.”
“I don’t think the evidence reflects that,” Samour said. The judge also found that that slide is a general attack on Holmes’ character and ordered the slide be removed.
Other slides are “not gratuitous shots” at Holmes’ character, Samour said. Those slides are appropriate because they do speak to Holmes’ sanity.
“I don’t know what other words you can use,” Samour said.
He overruled the objection to the reset of the slides.
Next, Samour addressed King’s objections to slides referring to a statement that defense experts “changed their practices” because they were paid by defense attorneys. He also objected to other slides that make comments about the credibility of other defense experts.
Brauchler said one of the slides refers to an expert who said that defense attorneys told him not to speak with Holmes’ parents. Samour agreed with Brauchler concerning that expert.
But King said the expert’s explanation was incorrect. He said he never limited the expert from speaking to Holmes’ parents.
Samour, however, said that if the expert answered a question wrong, “that’s on him.”
“You’re exposing your expert to be attacked on the witness stand,” Samour said.
The judge overruled the objection to those slides.
Next, Samour discussed the slide that talks about “impression management.”
“This one doesn’t bother me,” Samour said.
The judge said that even the defense’s expert testified about this issue, specifically that Holmes tried present as less ill to her.
The objection was overruled.
Slides with statements that say, “Look how deep I am,” “Look how philosophical I am,” “Look how smart I am.” Samour sustained the objections to those three slides because they implied that Holmes said those statements.
Brauchler asked if he could change the slides so the statements are presented in the third-person. Samour said that was fine.
Next, the statements that Holmes made about what happened inside the theater will be allowed as long as the are used to speak to Holmes’ sanity, Samour ruled.
“I’m assuming that they are going to go exactly to the issue,” Samour said.
Brauchler pointed out that he placed the names of the mental health professionals Holmes was speaking to underneath the quotes.
Samour overruled King’s objection.
But King said some of those statements are from the notebook and the same standards should apply. Samour agreed and urged Brauchler to be careful.
Next, Samour pointed out slides with red underlining. He said the red underlining are problematic and should be deleted.
The slide concerning the “kill suit” is argument and will be allowed, Samour said.
“This is the armor the defendant put on before he went to the theater to commit the shooting,” Samour said.
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1:02 p.m.
Samour sustained an objection that names a defense expert and uses the word “manufactured.”
The final slide in question refers to collateral damage. Samour said the slide is problematic because it shows a picture of Farrah Soudani and her injuries. Samour sustained the objection and ruled that the slide should be removed.
“PowerPoint presentations and visual aids have become more and more popular at trials,” Samour said.
Still, attorneys have to be careful with them, Samour said.
“I want to make sure that I caution the prosecution to be careful to avoid opinions,” Samour said. “It has to be based on the evidence.”
He also warned Brauchler to be careful not to confuse arguments with evidence and be careful not to mislead the jury.
“I just don’t want the jury to be misled in any way,” Samour said.
Samour overruled the defense’s overall objection to Brauchler’s PowerPoint.
Brauchler asked if he could put the word manufactured inside quotation marks. King maintained his objection and said that Dr. Raquel Gur just combined the quotes in question.
“They are not manufactured,” King said.
Samour sustained the objection. He reminded Brauchler that he could bring up the issue during his closings.
“This is a smart jury. They will remember,” Samour said.
Samour asked the attorneys how long the needed for lunch.
He gave them 15 minutes.
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1:29 p.m.
Before the jury came in, Samour reminded people in the gallery that they are not allowed to have visible emotional outbursts.
“I am sensitive that this case may provoke powerful emotions,” Samour said. “Some visible emotional reactions are inevitable.”
But if anyone feels an emotional outburst coming on they are asked to leave the courtroom.
“Let’s bring the jury in,” Samour said.
The jury was brought into the courtroom.
“I hope you had a good lunch,” Samour said. “I apologize for the delay.”
Brauchler began.
“Three years ago next Monday four hundred people from this community filed into this theater,” Brauchler said. “They came in happy. They came in hopeful of being entertained.”
He flashes a photograph of the inside of the movie theater.
“They came in hoping to see a story of a hero dressed in black,” Brauchler said. “But that’s not what happened. Instead a different figure appeared by the screen dressed all in black.”
That figure came in with on thing in his mind, “mass murder.” He came in with more than 700 rounds, Brauchler said.
“He shot anything and everything he could,” Brauchler said.
Inside the “kill box” Holmes was successful in only killing 12 people, Brauchler said.
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1:38 p.m.
“There’s no way I could go through all of these victims with you,” Brauchler said as he clicked through slides of all names.
The jury heard from 69 of the 70 people injured, Brauchler said.
“One of the people you didn’t hear from was Matt McQuinn,” Brauchler said. McQuinn was shot more than any other victim — eight times.
“This is the portion of the case where we have to talk about the law,” Brauchler said.
He begins with reasonable doubt.
“It’s a doubt that’s based on common sense,” Brauchler said.
The charges in the case overlap, he said. The two different first-degree murder charges both apply in this case, he said.
“Some of this stuff is not hotly contested,” Brauchler said.
There is no evidence that anyone else walked into the theater and killed people, Brauchler said. There is also no evidence that anyone else killed 12 people.
Brauchler explains what it means to “act knowingly.” One does so when what they do is practically certain to cause a certain result.
The charge also requires someone to act with malice, Brauchler said.
“We know he wants to kill people,” Brauchler said. “He creates a kill box with all of his planning and his efforts.”
Holmes is aware that when he shoots steel penetrating bullets that it is practically certain he will kill people, Brauchler said. Doing so demonstrates a huge indifference toward human life.
After considering all that it is clear that “he wasn’t insane when he did it,” Brauchler said.
“We know that he intends to kill everyone that he can inside the theater,” he said.
The attempted murder charges apply to all 70 of the victims. Under that charge, it must be clear that Holmes took a substantial step toward committing murder.
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1:51 p.m.
Next, Brauchler discusses Holmes’ sanity.
“The law doesn’t care what he thinks is right or wrong. It cares whether he thinks that society thinks it’s right or wrong,” Brauchler said.
It’s not enough to simply show that Holmes’ has a severe mental disorder that impairs his ability to understand reality, Brauchler said. It also has to affect someone’s capacity to tell right from wrong.
The district attorney flips through disorders that do not, in and of themselves, prove someone is insane. The list included all of the diagnoses applied to Holmes during the trial.
“It takes something more,” Brauchler said. “Our law says that’s not enough.”
The diagnosis does not matter under the law.
“It’s how it affects the person,” he said.
The phrase “but for” — which has been used by defense attorneys — is not included in any legal standard, Brauchler said.
Holmes’ episode in November 2012 cannot “instruct us about what happened in July 2012.”
The MRIs done on Holmes do not prove anything concerning Holmes’ sanity, Brauchler said.
All of the people from the University of Colorado say Holmes acted the same “from the beginning,” he said.
“So we look at function,” Brauchler said.
Holmes knows his plans are against society’s view of morality “because of deception,” Brauchler said. E-mails between Holmes and his parents appear normal, they talk about starting an IRA and his research. Holmes called his mother on Mother’s Day three days after he purchased the tear gas and the gas mask.
Rebecca Wingo was a single mother of two, Brauchler said.
“She, like almost all of the other deceased, was shot in the head and the torso,” Brauchler said.
A photograph of Wingo flashed on the screen.
Brauchler goes on to describe the e-mails Holmes sent his parents in between buying weapons and equipment.
“Nothing else going on,” Brauchler said.
Seven days before the attack, Holmes’ parents ask to come out and visit. He tells them he has nothing planned that weekend in August 2012. That is an example of deception, Brauchler said.
“Not of law enforcement, but of his own parents,” Brauchler said.
Holmes’ friend and former girlfriend pushed back on his theory of killing other people, Brauchler said. It was an attempt to “test the waters,” he said.
Her rejection of Holmes’ idea is an example of society rejecting Holmes’ idea, acknowledging it is wrong. His friend rejects it to.
He lies and tell the two that he is talking about his theory with his therapist. Still, he keeps seeing the psychiatrist and continues school.
Dropping out of school would have been “conspicuous.”
“He is killing time,” Brauchler said.
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2:01 p.m.
By May 10, 2012, Holmes already knew what he was going to do, Brauchler said.
Despite all of his planning, Holmes continues to go to class and do well.
“He goes to the prelims, as we know, because of deception,” Brauchler said.
Holmes continues to lie to people and keep his plan a secret, Brauchler said.
King objected. He said the statements Brauchler was referring to are being misused and do not relate to sanity.
Samour asked King and Brauchler to approach for a bench conference.
Samour overruled the objection.
Brauchler clarifies a slide he showed the jury.
Holmes quits therapy because “he wants to get out of there.”
The numerous air fresheners placed inside Holmes’ apartment, used to mask the smell of gas, are another example of deception.
The district attorney points to Holmes’ careful purchases on the Internet and in the stores.
“No hasty purchases,” Brauchler said. “Not a one.”
Patience is “paramount” with Holmes, he said. The Gmail chats between Holmes and his former girlfriend are important because he told her that what he feels like doing is “evil.” She asked why.
“To kill people of course,” Holmes wrote.
“He knows what society thinks of what his conduct is going to be,” Brauchler said.
AJ Boik was 18 when he was killed. Brauchler showed the jury a photograph of Boik and his girlfriend inside the theater.
“Like so many others he never made it out of his seat,” Brauchler said.
Holmes talked about his purpose to his ex-girlfriend.
Jessica Ghawi’s purpose was taken away when she was killed in her seat, Brauchler said.
Alex Teves had just graduated with his master’s degree and was sitting next to the woman he would have married when he was shot, Brauchler said.
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2:12 p.m.
Next, Brauchler showed a photograph of Micayla Medek.
“All of that planning goes to his intent,” Brauchler said.
Holmes saw nine different movies in that theater complex in an effort to pick out the perfect theater, Brauchler said. He paid for the tickets with cash. Brauchler shows the jury a photograph of Holmes’ drawing of the theater.
Holmes notes the different exits in each theater. Brauchler’s voice goes up and down as he reads the notes Holmes made.
King continues to object to Brauchler’s wording. Samour overrules them.
The day before Holmes’ final exams, he bought handcuffs to lock the doors of the theater. Holmes researched other mass shootings such as Columbine, Brauchler said.
“He has the capacity to form the intent to act,” Brauchler said. “He knows his victims want to live.”
“He knows the victims don’t agree with him.”
Holmes worked to anticipate where victims would flee. He blocked the exit behind him and limits the other exits.
“He wants to control the crowds that want to save their own lives,” Brauchler said. “He has intent.”
Holmes shot specifically at the exits.
“They’re going right where someone would walk,” Brauchler said. “That’s that universal malice.”
Photographs of victims who were shot while they ran out of the theater were shown to the jury.
Holmes anticipated how people might “fight,” Brauchler said. A photo took of himself wearing the body armor flashed on the screen inside the courtroom.
King objected and Samour overruled the objection.
“Why does he think they would rush him? Because he knows those members would disagree with what he was about to do,” Brauchler said.
Brauchler walks to seats that were taken out of the theater and describes how people hid behind the theater seats. So Holmes bought steel-penetrating bullets.
“He’s right,” Brauchler said. “Those rounds go all the way through.”
“He also has to anticipate the screams of his victims,” Brauchler said. Holmes bought the wireless headphones and music to drown out those screams.
King objected again. Samour overruled it.
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2:24 p.m.
Holmes trained for the shooting, Brauchler said. He went to the shooting range five times. He practiced shooting his gun at life-sized silhouettes of people.
He practiced inserting magazines and reloading his guns. Holmes wore the gloves he knew he was going to wear during the shooting.
When Holmes was pulled over for speeding, he saw the officer look at the guns through his back window. Holmes “learned from it” and began researching window tinting laws in Colorado.
Holmes brought 700 rounds of ammunition to the theater as part of his “conscious objective to kill people,” Brauchler said.
Brauchler repeatedly points at Holmes.
“Because of this guy” a victim is still living with injuries, Brauchler said.
Holmes knows that what he is doing is wrong and illegal so he buys road stars, Brauchler says. He also bought a first-aid dressing to care for himself in case he was shot.
“If he expects to be killed, if he really expects to be captured, why does he need a first-aid dressing?” Brauchler said. “Unless it’s in case he got away.”
“There are no meaningless decisions,” Brauchler said.
Outside the theater Holmes “felt outnumbered.” For the first time he realized that the explosives in his apartment did not go off. That is why Holmes put down his handgun, Brauchler said.
“That is logical, that is rational, that is anything but psychotic,” Brauchler said.
“He doesn’t want to get shot or hurt. It’s all about him.”
Next, Brauchler calls the devices in the apartment an “incendiary bomb,” “explosive bomb,” and a “bomb.”
“He plans for contingencies,” Brauchler said.
Holmes deliberately did what was the least suspicious, Brauchler said. Holmes tested some of the chemicals and items he bought.
“Did he go to the store and buy napalm?” Brauchler asked. “No.”
Holmes made napalm in his apartment.
King objected to the red arrows that had been added to the photographs Brauchler was showing. Brauchler asked to approach the bench.
— — —
2:37 p.m.
After the bench conference, Brauchler and prosecutor Rich Orman hovered over Brauchler’s computer. Samour said he sustained the objection.
Brauchler continued.
Mangesium ribbon was found in Holmes’ apartment.
“Why magnesium?” Brauchler said. “Because he anticipates.”
Magnesium reacts to water that would have been used to put out the fires. Holmes chose green bottles so that it was not clear that it was gasoline inside them.
“Boy, that’s thoughtful. Boy, that’s deliberative,” Brauchler said.
After the attack, Holmes told authorities that he had four guns and improvised incendiary explosives at his apartment.
“He knows. And he knows what he possesses,” Brauchler said.
The same goes for the theatergoers.
“He’s very patient. He wants everyone at the theater to see him as no different,” Brauchler said.
He wore pants over his ballistic chaps. He walked around to the front of the theater with the chaps and pants on.
“He acts like they do,” Brauchler said. “It has to dawn on him that some of these people could be in those chairs.”
Photographs of Holmes in the lobby before the movie are shown. A video of Veronica Moser-Sullivan walking through the lobby is shown.
“He picks his moment,” Brauchler said.
Holmes steps out of the theater and makes a call to the CU switchboard, because what he knows he’s doing is wrong, Brauchler said.
“He opens the door and he steps into the darkness,” Brauchler said.
A photograph of Alex Sullivan was shown. Sullivan was shot in the heart and lungs.
Jonathan Blunk died protecting the woman he was with. A photograph of Blunk was shown to the jury.
— — —
2:47 p.m.
Brauchler moves on to discussing the experts hired by the defense.
Jonathan Woodcock saw Holmes four days after the shooting. Woodcock’s resume was not admitted as evidence. A defense investigator was present during Woodcock’s interview.
“He gets some statements from the defendant,” Brauchler said.
Holmes remembered his GPA from his undergraduate studies. He told him he didn’t consider any of his homicidal ideations to be a problem.
“Incredible presence of mind for an unmedicated guy four days after a mass murder,” Brauchler said.
King objected. Brauchler and King met at the bench for a conference.
Samour overruled the objection and gave the jury a limiting instruction.
Brauchler was given a warning that he was reaching a time check.
Despite one defense expert’s testimony that he was withdrawing from society, Holmes signed up for online dating sites.
Four “unmedicated days” after the shooting, Holmes told Woodcock that he “wouldn’t want it to have it happen to me.”
All of it goes to Holmes’ intent, Brauchler said.
Hate repeatedly comes up in Holmes’ interviews and writings, Brauchler said.
Holmes told doctors that he was “catatonic” before the shooting. But Brauchler flips through slides of all the things that Holmes continued to do during the months and weeks before the shooting.
Brauchler has started comparing the different things that Holmes told different doctors hired by defense attorneys. Again, he points out that Woodcock waited until jury selection to write a report about Holmes.
Brauchler points out that Woodcock cited the wrong law in his findings.
King continues to object. The judge reminds the jury about the limiting instruction.
— — —
3:00 p.m.
Brauchler moves onto Dr. Robert Hanlon, who was hired by defense attorneys. He immediately points out that he is not a board-certified “anything.”
Next he talks about Dr. Gur. He admits that she is a successful academic expert, but her work is not applicable in the courtroom.
Two months before jury selection, Gur sat down with Holmes’ parents, but she did not record that interview or any of her interviews with Holmes. Gur did video record the defendant she worked with before Holmes.
Gur spent a total of 28 hours with Holmes. But the majority of her time with Holmes came after the two court-appointed psychiatrists met with Holmes.
Brauchler points out that Gur incorrectly presented Holmes’ statements in her report.
“Do you remember her defense to that?” Brauchler said. “It’s the essence.”
“In here we need facts,” Brauchler said.
Holmes made statements and used words with Gur that he did not use with anyone else. Gur’s report was “watered down” during her testimony.
“She is probably great at research,” he said. “But this requires a different skill set.”
Gur also used the wrong legal standard, Brauchler said.
King objected again. Samour allowed Brauchler to continue after he gave a limiting instruction.
Brauchler shakes his head as he describes Gur’s report.
Then he showed the jury a photograph of Gordon Cowden, who was killed inside the theater.
Next, Brauchler moves on to the court-appointed psychiatrists who evaluated Holmes.
Dr. Jeff Metzner has been court-appointed for 80 percent of his assignments.
“He reviewed every single thing in this case,” Brauchler said. “He called everyone.”
Metzner, who found that Holmes was legally sane, spent more than 20 hours with Holmes. His report was 120 pages long.
“It was detailed,” Brauchler said. “He did a detailed analysis.”
“He rendered a clear opinion,” Brauchler said. “He is sane. And he was on the 19th and 20th of July.”
Next, Brauchler talks about Dr. William Reid, the second court-appointed psychiatrist. Reid has testified for the defense more than the prosecution in other cases.
All of Reid’s interviews were recorded and then shown to the jury.
“It was his words the way he delivered them to the questions that were asked,” Brauchler said.
Next, Brauchler talks about Caleb Medley, who is sitting in the courtroom.
His wife was giving birth while doctors put Medley’s “brain back together.”
Brauchler talks about Ferra Soudani and shows a photograph of her in the hospital.
Reid also found Holmes sane.
“All of this evidence allows you to check these boxes,” Brauchler said.
— — —
3:06 p.m.
A photograph of John Larimer was shown to the jury. Brauchler recounted how Larimer’s friends tried to carry him out of the theater.
Jesse Childress likely died early, Brauchler said. He was hit with a round from the shotgun, the first gun that Holmes fired.
A photo of Childress was shown to the jury.
Brauchler describes Ashley Moser’s courage as she testified.
“Ashley Moser walked into that theater,” Brauchler said. “She left there, carried out a miscarried mom with a dead 6-year-old daughter.”
A photo of Veronica Moser-Sullivan was shown.
“Forever our kindergartener,” Brauchler said.
While her photograph was still on the screen, Brauchler played a 911 call capturing gunshots and screams.
“Reject this claim that he couldn’t form the intent to murder,” he said. “That guy was sane beyond a reasonable doubt and he needs to be held accountable for what he did.”
Brauchler finished his arguments and the jury was released for the first afternoon break. Brauchler will have 25 minutes for rebuttal.
Defense attorneys will present their closing arguments after the break.
— — —
3:31 p.m.
After the break, the judge waited to bring the jury in until everyone to get seated inside the courtroom.
The jury was then brought into the courtroom.
“Welcome back,” Samour told the jury.
“Mr. King is there a closing argument on behalf of Mr. Holmes?” Samour asked.
“Yes, Your Honor.”
King walked in font of the jury with his hands in his pockets.
“Ladies and gentlemen, when you sit here for an hour and a half and this guy (pointing to Brauchler) talks to you as if Mr. Holmes ins’t mentally ill at all, you need to ask yourself, ‘What does the evidence show?'” King said. “You need to ask yourself ‘Who said this is the case?'”
The very doctors Brauchler based his closing arguments on contradict his statements, King said.
“There isn’t a lot of logic to what Mr. Holmes said. That’s because he’s mentally ill,” King said.
King points again to Brauchler and states that even the doctors who found Holmes sane also found that Holmes was psychotic.
“If his thought process was logical and what he wanted to accomplish was the mission and not get treated, why go see a psychiatrist at all?” King asked. “It’s not logical. It defies logic. That’s the psychotic process.”
Behind a lectern, in a booming voice, King reminds the jury that they are in “pursuit of the truth.”
Defense attorneys have not manipulated the evidence, rather than “picking and choosing different portions.”
When Holmes stepped into the theater, “he had lost touch with reality.” Holmes was consumed with a mental disease that he had dealt with for 10 years.
“You cannot divorce the mental illness from this case or from Mr. Holmes. Because the mental illness caused this to happen. Only the mental illness and nothing else,” King said. “To stand her and pretend that Mr. Holmes is not mentally ill is misconstruing the evidence.”
— — —
3:44 p.m.
The case is “about to get harder” for jurors who are going to be called on to make a “very important decision,” King said.
Jurors have to make that decision based on reason and common sense, King said. They cannot make the decision out of “retribution” or “passion or emotion.”
“This is not an act of free will. This is not a conscious choice made by a rational mind,” King said.
King reminds them that all he is asking them to do is “accept with reality.” Prosecutors do not want to do that because it is not useful for their purposes.
Brauchler objected to the statement. Samour overruled the objection. King says people in this country seem to be in denial about mental illness. He says that needs to change.
“This is the place and the time is now. And it’s going to take strength,” King said.
There is no room for hatred or vengeance within the law, he said. Much of the evidence the jury heard is uncontested by defense attorneys.
“We’re not throwing stuff at the wall and seeing what sticks. We accept the case,” King said.
“So you need to ask yourself, ‘Why did we hear all of it then?'” King said. “It appears like it may be to get at your emotions. To pull at your heartstrings. I hope that you can see that that’s something that you need to guard against.”
King asked the jury to “accept the fact that people get sick.” He points out stigmas about mental illness and tells the jury that they are the people who can help change that.
“It makes no sense. There’s no logical reason for it,” King said referring to Holmes’ upbringing and family. “There is no reason why this happened other than the mental illness.”
Jurors have to try and understand what was going on in Holmes’ brain on July 20, 2012.
“You can’t just ignore the fact that he was mentally ill,” King said.
“The only issue is whether or not Mr. Holmes was sane at the time,” King said.
Next, King moves on to the “test” that is reasonable doubt.
“I’m never going to ask you to speculate or imagine something that isn’t there,” King said.
A reasonable doubt includes reason and common sense. It’s a doubt that would cause “reasonable people to react.” jurors must consider that in how it relates to them.
“What’s important to you?” King asked.
Decisions made in the courtroom are different than the outside world.
“Here, in the fortress of the law, there’s no room for a mistake,” King said.
“Here, Mr. Holmes gets one chance. One decision. One jury.”
— — —
3:55 p.m.
“The hesitation is the reasonable doubt,” King said.
King reminds the jury that the burden of proof is on the prosecution.
“They have to prove what happened,” King said.
Prosecutors have to prove that the mental disorder Holmes was suffering from did not affect his ability to distinguish right from wrong.
“That is very, very difficult,” King said.
“Mr. Holmes was insane, that’s the verdict I want you to reach,” King said.
Brauchler objected and asked to approach the bench. Samour sustained the objection.
“That’s a valid objection,” King said. “Because it’s not what I think the verdict is.”
It should be what the evidence shows, King said.
Jurors have a duty to go through all of the charges in the case. King makes a juggling motion with his hands as he begins discussing the differences between first-degree murder after deliberation and first-degree murder with extreme indifference.
Jurors are required to consider those differences for every count, King said.
Next, King points to Brauchler’s arguments about defense experts. The two court-appointed psychiatrist had some of the same issues, but Brauchler did not criticize those experts about the same issues.
There’s been nothing to suggest that the findings and diagnoses were wrong, King said.
“Interestingly enough, when the judge asked the prosecution if they wanted to call the rebuttal witness, we heard no expert witnesses to contradict what those opinions were,” King said.
Brauchler objected. Samour sustained it.
“The evidence in this case is remarkably consistent when it comes to this case,” King said. “That’s what every one of these experts told you.”
All four psychiatrists have diagnosed Holmes with some form of schizophrenia. All of them testified that it was a long-standing illness. None of them said Holmes was faking.
Brauchler’s arguments that Holmes was being deceptive “flies in the face” of the evidence, King said.
— — —
4:10 p.m.
“All of the experts have said that Mr. Holmes is very, seriously mentally ill,” King said. “They’ve all said that that should be taken into consideration.”
King reads from a transcript of Reid’s testimony concerning how it is extremely unlikely that Holmes was able to beat the tests that would show he was malingering. He urges the jurors to question if there is evidence to support Brauchler’s statements.
“Because he can’t have Mr. Holmes being that mentally ill,” King said.
If there as anything wrong with the opinions of the experts jurors “would have heard them,” King said.
“But you did not hear anything of the sort,” King said.
Hanlon was a good example of prosecutors not attacking the opinions and findings of the experts, King says. He talks about the arguments around whether Hanlon met with Holmes’ parents and the fact that Gur didn’t video record the interview.
“I wish that she had videotaped it,” King said. “I make mistakes … But I am not here trying to fool anybody. I am here presenting the truth so that you can decide.”
Brauchler’s entire cross-examination about why Gur didn’t interview Holmes’ parents “doesn’t mean anything,” King said.
King said the court-appointed neuropsychologist found the same results as the neuropsychologist hired by defense attorneys.
“So what’s the point?” King said. “To mislead you?”
The testing that Hanlon and Rose Manguso did is important, King said. The results show that Holmes gave his full effort on the test. There was no indication that Holmes malingered at all.
Despite this evidence, prosecutors suggest to the jury that Holmes is faking, King said.
“Based upon what evidence? Or is it just something he’s making up?” King said.
King put up a photograph of Holmes’ notebook.
Brauchler did not question doctors about the content of the notebook, King said. One of the doctors described the notebook as having “a lot of crazy in there.”
King urges the jury to question whether Brauchler asked the jury to ignore all of the journal’s writings with the exception of the part of the notebook that shows Holmes’ planning.
“Psychotic people can plan,” King said. “It’s not an indication of whether they’re being consumed by delusion.”
— — —
4:25 p.m.
Holmes’ breakdown in November 2012 is not irrelevant, King said.
“This is a long-standing mental illness that continues to this day,” King said.
King lists some of Holmes’ psychotic symptoms and explains why diagnosis is so important in this case.
“We have to know what kind of a mental illness we’re talking about,” King said. “There are very different kinds of mental illness.”
A psychotic illness has a significant impact on every aspect of someone’s life and cognition, he said.
“You cannot contribute logic to the thoughts and behaviors that come out of that psychotic system,” King said.
The diseases Holmes was diagnosed with don’t happen because of “bad behavior.” It’s a disease that someone inherits.
“You can’t blame someone for getting schizophrenia,” King said.
Holmes does not enjoy his delusions and he did not choose his illness. He had not gained anything from it.
“He’s in jail facing the death penalty or life in prison,” King said.
“Mr. Holmes is genetically loaded for psychotic mental illnesses,” King said.
Holmes’ aunt and grandfather were both diagnosed with severe mental illness.
The disease progresses over time. Holmes has the same diagnosis of his aunt and is being treated with the same drugs.
“The record is abundantly clear that Mr. Holmes has been struggling with this disease for years,” King said.
There are video recordings of Holmes as a child playing with his friends and playing sports and interacting with others.
“But something changed,” King said.
When he moved back to San Diego, Holmes began to feel like something was different and that his “brain was different.”
The development of Holmes’ disease and the changes in his behavior have been corroborated by others.
King admits that the suicide attempt involving a piece of cardboard was not going to kill Holmes. But it is important and alarming, King said.
Court-appointed psychiatrists and defense-hired experts found that Holmes began demonstrating symptoms as early as high school, King said.
King reads from a page in Holmes’ notebook in which he describes the therapy he received when he was in middle school. In the same passage Holmes wrote about deciding to kill others so that he could live, King said.
Holmes’ symptoms fit the “classic pattern” for how schizophrenia develops. In 2012, Holmes had his first psychotic break. That is when the delusions first appeared and that is why Dr. Reid diagnosed Holmes the way he did, King says.
— — —
4:39 p.m.
King called prosecutors’ efforts to explain Holmes’ mental illness as “misdirection.”
He played a clip of Reid’s interview with Holmes.
“How far back does the idea of human capital go?”
“Since graduate school,” Holmes said.
“That’s when it changed,” King said after pausing the video.
Holmes meetings with Dr. Lynne Fenton and other mental health professionals at the University of Colorado are significant. They thought that Holmes was on the verge of having a nervous breakdown.
“That’s what these professionals thought. That’s a fact. It’s not something I’m making up,” King said.
By the time Holmes sought out therapy he was the “most anxious” person the professional had ever seen.
“It all fits together like a puzzle and every piece goes in the right place,” King said.
The first time he saw Fenton was on March 21, 2012. Fenton identified Holmes as having a “psychotic level of thinking.”
“He’s already psychotic on the 21st of March,” King said.
Fenton considered an anti-psychotic medication right away.
“He knew what he was doing was legally wrong but that’s not the test,” King said. “Illegal is not the standard in Colorado.”
The standard is “morally what did he think,” Kind said.
King urged the jury to ask the question, “What evidence is that based on?”
“You must base you decision on evidence,” King said.
He cautioned jurors to avoid the distractions that the prosecution has presented.
Holmes was psychotically ambivalent about his actions being illegal. He repeatedly talked to the mental health experts about the struggle that was going on in Holmes’ mind, King said. Holmes wrote about the effects the medications Fenton prescribed had on him.
“Not good mania,” Holmes wrote.
The coping techniques that Holmes had used to control his delusions for years disappeared, possibly because of the medications that were prescribed. They may have also been overcome by the progression of his illness.
“Counsel can tell you he didn’t change, he didn’t change. But he did. He changed dramatically,” King said.
— — —
4:54 p.m.
Even though Holmes was psychotic when he sought treatment in 2012, he was able “to hold it together,” King says.
Holmes had delusional thinking despite reports that he was polite.
“This is not the same guy,” King said. “Well yeah he’s the same guy. He’s James Holmes. He’s the same guy who is in the middle of a psychotic breakdown.”
By the time Holmes quit treatment, his treating psychiatrists found that he was intermittently functioning at a psychotic level. They also found that he may be shifting into a psychotic disorder.
“They were right. He was. They were spot on,” King said.
King played a video clip of Holmes describing the shadows he saw to Reid.
“Usually it looked like the shape of a person, like maybe they were juggling too,” Holmes said.
“Any thought what that might have meant?”
“No.”
There was no “rhyme or reason” to the shadows, Holmes told Reid.
“These are progressive symptoms, folks,” King said.
Holmes reported the shadows to different people. At times he minimizes them because he doesn’t want people to think he is sick.
All of the doctors said Holmes’ delusions started in March 2012, King said. It was the first time he brought the delusion up to his former girlfriend.
“This is the beginning of the delusional construct,” King said.
Holmes believed that as soon as he shared his delusion he had to carry it out.
Some of the psychiatrists found Holmes’ jail writings to be evidence of disorganized thinking.
King moves into Holmes’ psychotic break in November 2012 when he started ramming his head into the wall.
Holmes suffered from catatonia in November 2012, King said. Holmes misdiagnosed himself with catatonia in the summer of 2012, King said.
While Holmes got a CAT scan he repeated the same phrase over and over again for more than an hour.
King said that given Holmes’ health at the time, it was unlikely that he would develop a delirium from not eating or drinking.
“Delirium doesn’t make you smear poop on yourself,” King said. “Delirium doesn’t give you catatonia.”
Any delirium that was present cleared up quickly. Holmes was experiencing a psychosis, King said. He was hearing eight different voices and seeing shadows.
— — —
5:10 p.m.
King was given a time warning.
Next, King plays a video of Holmes talking with Reid. Reid is reading from Holmes’ jail writings.
“That’s a bit confusing to me,” Reid said.
Holmes’ writings make no sense, King said. His behavior around the crime appears disorganized.
“He overloads the magazines,” King said.
The setup in his apartment is dangerous and frightening, but there are things that are disorganized about it. The three different triggers do not seem logical, King said.
“Can’t work. Doesn’t work,” King said.
Holmes’ childlike behavior is not that of a graduate student with a high IQ, King said. The neurological testing done on Holmes showed a drop in Holmes’ IQ that King called a “frightening change.”
“It’s all consistent,” King said.
The MRI done on Holmes was used to help show that Holmes’ brain had shrunk — a common symptom of schizophrenia, King says.
Brauchler objected and asked to approach.
After the bench conference Samour told King that he could continue.
King reminds the jury that they have to decide whether Holmes’ illness affected his ability to distinguish right from wrong.
King says that Metzner and Reid got the legal standard wrong.
Metzner, for example, incorrectly applied the standard to Holmes conversations with his former girlfriend, text messages with a different woman and his statements about killing children.
King played a composite video of every time Reid asked Holmes to “speculate” and analyze what he was thinking. Doing that will lead to bad information, King said. Reid pursued and suggests answers for Holmes, he said.
“They base their decisions on his speculation,” King said.
King plays a different composite video of Reid repeatedly saying “I don’t want to put words in your mouth,” “My thought not yours” and “Here’s what I’m thinking.”
“Over and over again we suggest the answers for Mr. Holmes,” King said. “It’s flawed.”
— — —
5:26 p.m.
“You applied the wrong standard,” King repeats.
“It’s not logical. It’s not a logical process. We can’t attribute logic to it when it’s psychotic,” King said.
Holmes’ delusion did not apply to only him. Holmes told read that if he is executed people will get points.
“That’s what he believes today,” King said. “He still thinks that.”
That is the power of the delusion. King points at Holmes as he explains this.
Unlike Reid and Metzner, Gur and Woodcock focus on how Holmes’ psychosis is a fluid thing.
“Read that notebook,” King said. “Tell me about the reflection and judgment that is shown there.”
“We know that he has been fighting this as a kid.”
Until the psychosis overtook Holmes he won his fight with mental illness, King said. He was able to suppress his unwanted thoughts.
“Think about it. Think about how strong and long-standing this mental illness is,” King said.
Holmes did not succeed in graduate school. The thing he spent his entire life dedicated to “doesn’t matter to him any more.”
The lack of motivation is not because Holmes couldn’t do well, it’s because he was overwhelmed by the need to complete his mission.
“He must complete the mission,” King said.
Holmes’ psychosis was taking place at the same time he was struggling in school.
“You can’t separate it from him,” King said.
A video clip of Holmes talking about his mission was played.
Holmes did not do the shooting because he wants to gain notoriety or because he was upset about losing his girlfriend, King said.
One of the last communications he had with someone talked about Holmes losing control of himself.
Holmes cut off all his contacts, changed the lights in his apartment to colored lights. He sees “virtually nobody for weeks,” King said.
A clip of Holmes explaining why he quit therapy was also played.
“I don’t know why,” Holmes said.
“He doesn’t know why,” King said.
King asked the jury to “accept the mental illness.”
“Acknowledge the overwhelming evidence that Mr. Holmes was in the throes of a psychotic episode,” King said. “We can’t separate the mental illness from him or from this crime. Mental illness is the sole reason — sole reason — why this crime took place.”
“I would ask you to be good, be strong and do the right thing. He’s not guilty by reason of insanity,” King said.
King sat down and the judge released the jury for a 15-minute break.
— — —
5:50 p.m.
After the break the jury was brought back into the courtroom.
Brauchler will have 25 minutes and 30 seconds for rebuttal. He asked for a warning when he has five minutes left.
“It was at about 45 minutes that I lost count of the time my name was referenced for why things went wrong in this case,” Brauchler said.
“Every single thing that you were just asked to consider, every single piece of it, was considered by Dr. Metzner and Dr. Reid,” Holmes said.
Brauchler said he would like to compare the video taken during Reid’s interview with Holmes and compare it to Dr. Gur’s — but he can’t because she did not record her interviews.
“Do not take what I tell you to the bank,” Brauchler said. “You’re the ones that took the notes.”
He points to the idea that Holmes’ process was illogical and irrational.
“Every single decision he made was to move forward” toward the shooting, Brauchler said.
Holmes went to see Fenton because he wanted to get rid of his anxiety, Brauchler said.
“He went to see Dr. Fenton looking for a fix,” Brauchler said.
He couldn’t quit because it would be too conspicuous.
“You know what that is, that’s rational. Evil, but rational,” Brauchler said.
— — —
6:02 p.m.
Holmes’ delusion is neither fixed nor false, Brauchler said. Holmes said “what makes me like me more is homicide.”
Holmes knows that it was morally wrong. He hid the plan from his parents. When his girlfriend pushes back on his theory she leaves.
“Everybody would view what he was doing was wrong and not just because there’s a statute about it but because it was morally wrong,” Brauchler said.
None of the tests done on Holmes were able to explain Holmes’ various descriptions of seeing shadows, Brauchler said. The descriptions of the shadows grew more violent as he described them more.
At times Holmes denied talking about shadows at all, Brauchler said.
“Who is this really for?” Brauchler asked as he picked up a copy of the notebook.
Holmes said he wanted Fenton to have the notebook so she could stop someone from going through the same thing. But the notebook is addressed to his mom, dad and sister.
“This is far from disorganized,” Brauchler said.
There were no signs of catatonia or other symptoms were found in Holmes’ e-mails, chats or other communications. Just in the notebook, Brauchler said.
He wrote down a notte to research firearms laws and mental illness in the notebook.
The difference between the experts is “expertise, effort and corroboration,” Brauchler said.
Brauchler said his cross-examination of Gur was difficult because she didn’t document anything and he had to discuss all of the details with her.
Next, Brauchler counters King’s statement that Holmes did not want to me remembered.
“Everything about this guy was self-centered and self-focused,” Brauchler said.
Holmes’ girlfriend said that the most important person to Holmes was Holmes.
“This guy is absorbed with himself,” Brauchler said. “He’s desperate to be wanted and be remembered.”
Brauchler points out the photographs that Holmes took of himself. Those photographs had do with how Holmes was going to be remembered.
— — —
6:08 p.m.
Holmes has all the attention he wanted now, Brauchler said. He showed the jury a photo of the photographs women sent Holmes in jail.
“This is the payoff,” Brauchler said. “I’m not asking you to remember this.”
Photographs of the victims started playing on the screen.
“I’m asking you to remember this,” Brauchler said.
“He armed himself to the teeth over two and half months,” Brauchler said. “He only stopped when the gun stopped.”
“At the end of the day, even without the mental health experts, you know,” Brauchler said.
“We know what insanity is based on the words and those instructions. This ain’t it,” Brauchler said.
“This guy gets held accountable. That’s what the evidence says,” Brauchler said. “So do court-appointed doctors.”
Thrusting his finger at Holmes Brauchler repeated, “Sane, sane, sane, guilty.”
Brauchler sat down.
Samour then listed the deliberating jurors first. Then the alternates.
— — —
6:25 p.m.
“Alternates should not feel like this has been a waste of time for you,” Samour said. “We could not have done this without you. We may still need you.”
Alternates do not know who is next in line. Samour said they have already used more than one alternate juror.
Samour instructed the alternates to leave their notebooks in their lockers. They are not allowed to take them home or into the room where they will be waiting.
All of the jurors have to be at the courthouse at 9 a.m. on Wednesday. The alternates will be in a different room and they will park in a different area.
Lunch will be provided for all of the jurors.
Jurors are allowed to stay as late as 5:30 p.m. Once the jurors reach their verdicts they will have to wait three hours before the verdicts will be read in court.
All of the exhibits — with the exception of the live ammunition — will go back with the jurors. Exhibits that were rejected by the judge will not go back, only exhibits that were admitted into evidence.
There will be no deliberations on Friday.
The judge will not give the deliberating jurors instructions before they go home every day.
“I’m trusting you,” Samour said.
Alternates are not allowed to deliberate. The judge read the alternate jurors a list of instructions for how they are to behave during deliberations.
There are no time limitations or requirements for how long the jurors deliberate.
Samour administered two oaths to all of the bailiffs who will help coordinate both the deliberating and alternate jurors.
The alternates were released first and told to collect their things from the jury deliberation room.
“We’ll just wait a couple of minutes,” Samour said.
The original jury instructions and verdict instructions will be waiting for the jurors Wednesday morning.
Samour asked for an attorney from each side to approach. After that bench conference, defense attorney Rebekka Higgs asked to approach.
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6:34 p.m.
After that conference, Samour released the deliberating jurors.
“Please make sure that you follow my advisement overnight,” Samour said.
He stressed that they cannot begin deliberating internally.
“Have a great evening,” Samour said.
Once the jury was out of the room Samour asked that all of the attorneys leave good contact information with the staff. He also asked that they all be available within 15 minutes.
Orman said that was not a problem. He did ask that attorneys be given the jury question on the phone, before the attorneys get there.
Samour said that is not his practice and attorneys will get the question when they get to the courtroom.
“I will give you as much time as you need,” Samour said.
King said that the time frame works for defense attorneys. Holmes will have to be present for any jury questions.
Samour will let the attorneys know when the jurors go home for the day.
Defense attorney Kristen Nelson asked that both PowerPoint presentations be admitted into evidence.
“All right, get some rest,” Samour said before stepping down.
Jordan Steffen: 303-954-1794, jsteffen@denverpost.com or twitter.com/jsteffendp
