Prosecutors in Colorado cinema massacre case want to bar some videos

By Keith Coffman DENVER (Reuters) - Prosecutors in the death penalty murder trial of accused Colorado cinema gunman James Holmes want certain videos barred from a potential sentencing hearing should jurors convict him of killing 12 moviegoers, court documents showed on Thursday. Holmes, 27, has pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity to multiple counts of first-degree murder and attempted murder stemming from the July 2012 shooting rampage, and he is set to go on trial this month. Prosecutors have said they will seek the death penalty if Holmes is convicted. Lawyers for Holmes have said the former neuroscience graduate student from California was undergoing a "psychotic episode" when he opened fire inside a Denver-area theater during a midnight screening of a Batman film, killing 12 people and wounding dozens more. In preparing for the trial and a potential penalty phase should Holmes be convicted, public defenders have sought to introduce promotional videos by groups Holmes volunteered with as a teenager, a speech by an author of a book on mental illness, videotaped testimony from some defense witnesses, and a video that would accompany testimony from his parents. Prosecutors argued in a motion filed last week that the videos are irrelevant hearsay evidence, and that allowing their use would deprive them of an opportunity to cross-examine the witnesses. “Under some circumstances, it is constitutional to limit the admissibility of some hearsay evidence in a capital sentencing hearing,” prosecutors wrote. Defense attorneys countered in a filing made public on Thursday that defendants are allowed wide latitude during penalty phase hearings in death penalty cases. “Mr. Holmes has the right to present mitigating evidence on his own behalf, and United States Supreme Court case law supports the argument that this evidence can include hearsay,” the pleading said. The exact nature of the videos is unknown as the court filings on the issue are heavily redacted. Jury selection for the trial is set to begin on Jan. 20, but defense lawyers have a pending motion for a postponement, citing “a vast amount” of new information prosecutors recently turned over to them. Arapahoe County District Court Judge Carlos Samour told both sides to file briefs on the motion for a continuance by Friday, and it was unclear when he will decide whether to delay the trial. (Reporting by Keith Coffman; Editing by Cynthia Johnston and Eric Beech)