CENTENNIAL| Just two jurors in the Aurora theater shooting trial were asked Monday to return for the next session, bringing the total retained so far to 58.
After an afternoon session that saw all five jurors who appeared in court released — four for financial hardships and one who said she was convinced James Holmes was guilty of the crime — Judge Carlos Samour Jr. lamented the lack of progress.
“Not a very productive afternoon. But that’s the way it goes,” he said.
Even with a less-than productive day, jury selection is still moving faster than Samour had expected. He said in court Monday that the two-day group questioning phase with 120 prospective jurors will start April 13 — more than a month earlier than initially planned. Opening statements will start April 21 or April 27, he said.
One of the jurors asked to return was a middle-aged white woman who previously worked as a paralegal. The woman said she had a “high level” of knowledge about the case from following media reports in the days after the July 2012 shootings, but hadn’t followed the case closely since. The woman said she would be able to put aside what she knows and fairly consider any evidence presented at trial.
Holmes sat quietly at the defense table during Monday and appeared to be reading a book that had been printed off on standard white paper.
Court is set to resume Tuesday morning.