Judge won’t postpone James Holmes theater shooting trial
‘The Court will not allow it to be unnecessarily and improperly delayed simply because it is a death penalty case,’ judge writes in order.
The Colorado judge overseeing the James Holmes murder case on Wednesday denied an 11th-hour attempt to have the much-anticipated trial delayed again.
With jury selection set to begin Jan. 20, Holmes’ court-appointed defense team asked the court last week for more time to sift through hundreds of pages of new evidence, among other things.
Holmes faces the death penalty for the July 2012 rampage at a Denver-area movie theater. Twelve people were killed and 70 others injured during a midnight screening of the Batman movie “The Dark Knight Rises.” Holmes, a graduate student in neuroscience at the time of the murders, pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity.
In his order, Judge Carlos Samour wrote that the defense’s request “falls short on the merits.”
“Regardless of how ‘enormous’ this case is, the ‘unbelievable amount of information’ that must be processed and the complexity of the mental health issues involved … it is irrefutable that the defense counsel, their expert witnesses and their staff have had an abundant amount of time to prepare for trial,” Samour wrote.
The trial date has been postponed five other times for various reasons. But now it appears Judge Samour is growing impatient.
“If, given the seemingly unlimited resources and manpower dedicated to this case, the defense cannot be ready for trial after so much time, the Court fears the defense will never announce ready for trial,” he wrote.
The judge concluded by saying that he is mindful of the case’s importance and that he has “unabated confidence” that the attorneys will be prepared to defend Holmes.
“If the defense’s motion gave the Court any pause, the Court would grant it,” Samour wrote. “This case is ready to proceed to trial. The Court will not allow it to be unnecessarily and improperly delayed simply because it is a death penalty case.”
A state record 9,000 people in suburban Arapahoe County have been summonsed as potential jurors. Jury selection is expected to take up to five months, with opening arguments not possible until late May or June.
Jason Sickles is a reporter for Yahoo News. Follow him on Twitter (@jasonsickles).
