CENTENNIAL | The judge in the Aurora theater shooting trial will decide in the coming days whether to delay jury selection, which scheduled to start next month.
Lawyers for accused shooter James Holmes asked for the delay last week and during a brief hearing Monday morning renewed that request.
One defense lawyer and one defense staff worker were not in court Monday because of medical emergencies, though,
Daniel King, one of the public defenders representing Holmes, said those medical emergencies make the need for a delay more acute. Plus, King said, the defense team only last week finished interviewing staffers at the state mental hospital where Holmes was examined, and they still have 5,000 pages of documents from the hospital to review.
King told Judge Carlos Samour that with the trial just a few months away, the defense is trying to plow through a mountain of evidence quickly.
“That’s the problem, Judge,” King said. “We are trying to jam all of this work in a small amount of time.”
Prosecutors opposed any delay, even in light of medical issues for defense.
Holmes appeared in court Monday wearing glasses and a red jail jumpsuit with his hands shackled at his waist. He sat quietly the defense table during the hour-long hearing.
Attorneys for Holmes said in motions last week they need two to three more months to review evidence and prepare.
Samour said he wanted to take a few days to consider his decision.
“This is a lot of new information and I need to analyze it and think about it before I proceed,” Samour said.
Holmes pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity to charges of killing 12 people and injuring 70 in the July 20, 2012, attack at Aurora’s Century 16 Theater. Prosecutors are seeking the death penalty.
Holmes’ lawyers say evidence now totals 85,000 pages of documents and hundreds of CDs and DVDs, along with other materials in computer memory drives.
What has Holmes ‘ lawyers been doing all this,besides asking for more time?