Theater Shooting Suspect Due Back In Court
DENVER (CBS4) - The suspect in the Aurora theater shooting will be back in court on Monday.
James Holmes will appear for a formal arraignment where he will be officially charged. There will also be a number of important motions to discuss. The motions include new evidence that was discovered last week. A notebook that was sent to Holmes psychiatrist is not part of the case against him.
Holmes first appeared in front of a judge last Monday. In that odd appearance Holmes seemed drowsy. Some speculate he was medicated. Many wonder if Holmes was putting on an act during last Monday's appearance. They say he was making an opening for an insanity plea.
Prosecutors say if Holmes is not proven competent he could be held in a state mental hospital. That could be indefinite until he's deemed fit for trial.
On Monday Holmes will likely be read more than 100 charges against him. Prosecutors will likely try to set up their case to pursue the death penalty.
"This is going to be a case where the focus is going to be on his mental state, his mental state during this process in terms of whether he is competent to even go through this process now and his mental state at the time that he committed these acts … (and the time) leading up to the commission of the acts," former Denver prosecutor Karen Steinhauser said.
The judge has also issued a number of gag orders in the case making it virtually impossible to know what evidence is being reviewed. On Monday the court will also review a motion to unseal those documents. It's likely those orders stay in place until the investigation is completed.
The trial against Holmes could take years.
