James Holmes has been found guilty after the Jury at Arapahoe County Justice Center on Thursday night July 16. The grad school dropout is the suspect behind the killing of 12 people and wounding 70 others in the July 2012 The Dark Knight Rises shooting.
Holmes, 27, is the man accused in the 2012 mass shooting at a crowded movie theater in Aurora, CO during a midnight screening of The Dark Knight Rises on July 20, 2012. A former doctoral student in neuroscience at the University of Colorado-Denver, he pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity - never denying that he carried out the bloody rampage.
The nine-woman, three-man jury decided Holmes was not insane in the shootings at a screening of the Batman movie. Prosecutors said Holmes is a cold-blooded murderer who aimed to kill 400. He is now facing 165 counts over all, including 24 counts of first-degree murder, two per victim for acting with deliberation and extreme indifference.
Holmes bought a ticket 12 days earlier of the tragedy. On July 19, 2012, he walked into the theater No. 9 screening of "The Dark Knight Rises" like other patrons. He then walked out through a rear door, which he left open. Some 18 minutes after the movie began, just after midnight, he returned wearing a ballistic helmet, a gas mask, black gloves and protective gear for his legs, throat and groin.
A tear gas canister exploded in the theater, and then gunfire erupted from an AR-15 rifle, a 12-gauge shotgun and at least one .40 caliber handgun. The shooting stopped with Holmes' arrest outside the theater about seven minutes after the first 911 calls were made to police. Officers found Holmes leaning against his car behind the theater and arrest him without a struggle.
Arapahoe County Chief District Judge Carlos Samour announced that the jury's foreman was juror number 737 - who had revealed during jury selection that he survived the 1999 massacre of 12 students and a teacher at Columbine High School in Littleton, Colorado.
The Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper said in a statement: "This has been an emotional and difficult time for the victims, their families, loved ones and friends. My hope is that this step brings some peace to each of them, and begins the healing process for all of Colorado."
The proceedings move forward to the sentencing stage, in which Holmes could face the death penalty. That begins Wednesday, July 22 and is expected to take about a month.
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