Former Aurora Police Chief: 'Need To Accept Finding Of Court'
CENTENNIAL, Colo. (CBS4)- Miami Beach Police Chief Dan Oates, the former police chief in Aurora, reacted to Friday's sentencing of the theater gunman and remembered the night of the attack more than three years ago.
"For me, the real emotional moment was three weeks ago when he was convicted on all counts," said Oates.
Oates said he closely followed the trial of James Holmes who was convicted on July 16 on 24 counts of first-degree murder, two counts for each person murdered in the July 20, 2012 attack inside an Aurora movie theater.
However the jury couldn't reach an agreement on the death penalty so he was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.
"We need to accept the finding of the court. I recognize they worked really hard and they voted their conscience," said Oates. "I surmise they must have accepted that he had some level of mental illness and for that reason they were compassionate and decided not to sentence him to death."
AURORA THEATER SHOOTING: Story Archive | Timeline | Remembering The Victims
Oates said he is glad the gag order has been lifted, so the officers can talk about what they saw and did that night.
"The entire state of Colorado got a full airing of the totality of the events and the families got to hear all the evidence. For that reason alone, the trial was worth it," said Oates. "Even though the outcome isn't the death sentence his is going to spend 23 hours a day for the rest of his life staring at a wall and he'll eventually die in prison. That is a form of justice."
