CENTENNIAL, Colo. - The prosecution in the Colorado theater-massacre case will seek the death penalty against the accused, James Holmes, rejecting for the time being an attempt by the defense to have him plead guilty and spend the rest of his life in prison.
At a hearing Monday before Chief Judge William Sylvester, the prosecution announced its decision to seek the death penalty.
“In this case for James Eagan Holmes, justice is death,” Arapahoe County District Attorney George Brauchler said. As the announcement was made, several people in the courtroom audience cried quietly. In the overflow room filled with many relatives of victims, one man clenched his fist as in a victory gesture.
Holmes showed no emotion at the announcement.
Brauchler said his office had reached out to 800 victims and family members and he personally had spoken to 60 victims.
As Holmes walked in, he glanced into the crowd and seemed to catch the eye of his father, who was seated in the courtroom. As the announcement was made, Holmes’ father put his arm around his wife.
Minutes after the announcement, the trial was pushed back from August to February, and Sylvester removed himself from the case, saying that now that the charges carry the death penalty, they will take years to resolve and he does not have the time to devote to such a drawn-out matter.
Despite the potential for more delays, some of those who lost loved ones were happy with prosecutors’ decision.
“I had a huge adrenaline rush,” said Bryan Beard, whose best friend Alex Sullivan was killed in the attack.“I love the choice. I love it, I love it.” He added, “I hope I’m in the room when he dies.”
But the prospect of a longer legal battle troubled others such as Pierce O’Farrill, who was shot three times.
“It could be 10 or 15 years before he’s executed. I would be in my 40s, and I’m planning to have a family, and the thought of having to look back and reliving everything at that point in my life, it would be difficult,” he said.
Last week, the defense offered to have Holmes plead guilty in exchange for taking the death penalty off the table.
The prosecution cried foul over what it called a defense tactic designed to sway public opinion.
“The filing is extremely unusual and unprecedented in that it attempts to involve this court in plea negotiations, in essence saying to the court: ‘If the prosecution does not accept our offer then this court and those associated with this case will suffer by having to endure months of motions and months of a trial,’ ” the prosecution said in court papers.
The prosecution, insisting it would not be bullied, further complained that it could not begin to entertain a plea deal without information that the defense has withheld.
Holmes, 25, a former neuroscience student, is accused of opening fire in a movie theater in Aurora, Colo., at a packed premiere showing of The Dark Knight Rises on July 20, killing 12 people and injuring about 70 others. The massacre horrified the country and helped launch national discussions on gun control, mental illness and capital punishment.
In the court filing last Wednesday, public defenders Daniel King and Tamara Brady said they had a standing offer weeks ago to let Holmes plead guilty without the possibility of parole if Brauchler dropped the death penalty.
“Mr. Holmes is willing to resolve the case to bring the proceedings to a speedy and definite conclusion for all involved,” the filing said.
The defense also said that it will continue to pursue an insanity defense if the prosecution rejects the offer of a guilty plea. If Holmes is found to be insane or suffer from a mental defect, he cannot be put to death.
But an insanity defense could add months, if not more, to the proceedings, the defense warned.
Prosecutors could argue that Holmes methodically planned his attack, casing the theater, stockpiling weapons and booby-trapping his apartment with explosives.
The judge newly assigned to the case, Carlos Samour Jr., warned defense lawyers that if they want to change Holmes’ plea, the longer they wait the harder it will be to convince him to accept it.
If Holmes is found innocent by reason of insanity, he will be sent to the state mental hospital, then returned to prison after treatment.
Colorado has three people on death row but has executed just one person over the past 45 years, in 1997.
In a related issue, prosecutors also argued in the filing Monday that the defense should not be allowed to try to force a New York reporter to reveal her source for a story about sealed evidence.
Fox News reporter Jana Winter cited anonymous law-enforcement officials in reporting that Holmes had sent a psychiatrist a notebook of drawings that foreshadowed the July 20 attack.
Prosecutors and Holmes’ lawyers argued about the issue in court Monday, but the defense wants to again question a detective about whether he might have told someone else about the notebook, who may have then talked to Winter.
Aurora Sgt. Matthew Fyles testified that a sticky note with a drawing was in the package sent to Dr. Lynne Fenton. Authorities previously did not confirm any drawings were inside,but Winter’s lawyer was prevented from asking questions about it because prosecutors said it wasn’t relevant. Winter didn’t mention a sticky note in her report.
The defense can’t complain about leaked information, prosecutors argue, because defense lawyers violated the gag order when they revealed the plea offer in their court filing.
Meanwhile, President Barack Obama was scheduled to visit Denver on Wednesday to highlight legislation that is part of his push for more gun control after a school massacre in Connecticut in December that killed 20 first-graders and six educators.
Information for this article was contributed by Jenny Deam and Michael Muskal of the Los Angeles Times; and by Dan Elliott of The Associated Press.
Front Section, Pages 1 on 04/02/2013