Colorado judge accepts James Holmes’ insanity plea in theater shootings
By Tim Skillern | The Lookout – 1 hr 22 mins ago
James Holmes sits with defense attorney Tamara Brady at a hearing earlier this year. (AP)
[Updated at 1:15 p.m. ET]
CENTENNIAL, Colo. — A judge on Tuesday accepted suspected gunman James Holmes' plea of not guilty by reason of insanity in the theater shootings case.
Holmes is accused of fatally shooting 12 Aurora, Colo., movie theater patrons last summer during a midnight screening of “The Dark Knight Rises,” the latest Batman movie. Fifty-eight others were injured. The Arapahoe County district attorney is seeking the death penalty.
A court-ordered psychiatric evaluation will take place at the Colorado Mental Health Institute in Pueblo. The exam will be finished by Aug. 2.
“Every person is presumed to be sane,” Judge Carlos A. Samour said from the bench Tuesday.
However, he noted that in Colorado, once an issue of insanity is raised, the burden is on the prosecution to prove the defendant is sane. The judge left open for Holmes’ defense team to have a doctor of their choice also evaluate Holmes.
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