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I just considered them numbers really, not people.
Holmes during his trial

James Eagan Holmes is an American mass murderer who perpetrated the July 20, 2012 Aurora movie theater shooting, killing a dozen people and wounding seventy others.

Background[]

Born December 13, 1987, Holmes' father is a mathematician and scientist and his mother a registered nurse. He was raised in Oak Hills in Monterey County, California, until he was twelve, when he returned to his birth town in San Diego to live in the Rancho Peñasquitos neighborhood. His social stability and mental health dropped as a result and, according to defense counsel Daniel King, he attempted suicide before at age 11. In high school, Holmes was a part of programs for football and cross-country racing, also attending the Peñasquitos Lutheran Church with his family. He wrote computer code during an internship at the Salk Institute for Biological Studies, where he never completed his project and his supervisor found him incapable of working in the setting; Holmes still looked back on it as a positive learning experience despite his beginner's skill set. Holmes earned a bachelor's degree in college in California, attending several honors societies, before moving to Aurora to major in neuroscience. He graduated at the top of his class, his recommendation letters describing him as a leader, mature, and actively involved in education. In 2008, he worked as a summer camp counselor in Glendale with no problems, but in 2010, he worked at a pill-coating factory in San Diego county and was as unsocial and strange, including once when he stared at a blank wall. Holmes never provided reasons for declining his tuition grants, and his application showed him in a picture with a llama.

Holmes said he was "quiet and easygoing" in the application for his rented apartment, and "agnostic" in a dating profile, Holmes also soliciting sex workers and leaving a history of reviews. He dated a biology classmate twice, but their relationship was called off; she remembered his disturbing jokes and desire to murder, not taking him seriously but still insisting he get help. Holmes later told a state-appointed specialist his depression worsened afterward, turning his suicidal ideation to homicidal. Social worker Margaret Roth and psychiatrist Lynne Fenton treated Holmes, regarding that he had signs of depressed and was "obsessed with killing for over a decade". By his own account, he used to fear what he called "Nail Ghosts" that would knock on the walls, and see what he called "flickers" out the corners of his eyes that fought each other with firearms and other weapons. After his breakup with his girlfriend, Holmes sought help in 2012 at the student clinic. He rejected treatments offered him, and a threatening email from Holmes to Dr. Fenton led to her assembling a threat assessment team, assuming he had schizoid personality disorder and putting his homicidal ideation without full, honest context as her primary concern. She spoke with his mother, and the clinic offered treatment to him if his insurance ran out, but Holmes declined. He saw three mental health professionals on campus, one near putting him on involuntary hold, but deciding eventually Holmes would be provoked by such action. Holmes failed his comprehensive exam in the spring, along other scholarly decline, planning to withdrawal despite the university not expelling him. Holmes stated his occupation as "laborer" to police later and dropped out after a significant oral exam. Two weeks before the shooting, Holmes texted a student to stay away from him because he was "bad news" and mentioned "dysphoric mania". He also called Dave Aragón, actor in the MTV series Pimp My Ride, about his trailer for his film The Suffocator of Sins, involving a vigilante shooter. Court documents stated he apparently once threatened a professor.

Holmes was reportedly a notable fan of superheroes, his apartment described as "decorated with Batman paraphernalia" by an unidentified law official. Later reports only found a single Batman mask in a mostly empty apartment, which even the prosecutor at Holmes' trial regarded as unsubstantial. Holmes reportedly picked the screening of the 2012 film The Dark Knight Rises for the shooting so as to targeted a filled theater. He reported liked movie theaters and chose Century 16 because he could lock the doors to prevent escapes. Holmes wanted an area with later police response, chose the midnight screening to not kill children in the theater, and rejected other locations, like an airport, due to its security and not wanting to send a message of terrorism. He also rejected explosives, chemicals, and bioweapons to not harm himself, as well as serial murder because he didn't want few, personal murders and evidence to get him caught sooner. Holmes spent almost two months preparing his massacre, buying his equipment over the course of almost six weeks. he was even found with a first aid kit and spike strips if police were to shoot at him or engage in a high speed chase. A month before the shooting, he wanted to join a gun club in Byers, but refused mandatory orientation in person. After Holmes left a message of incoherent, disturbed gibberish, the owner told his staff to be on the lookout for him, even though he was never heard from again or seen. To get his own plans ruined, hours before the attack, Holmes mailed a notebook of his preparations to his psychiatrist, which was found undelivered in the university's medical campus mailroom. He also called a mental health crisis line to dissuade him immediately beforehand, but hung up after nine seconds.

The Aurora Shooting[]

"Terrorism isn't the message. The message is, there is no message."

On July 20, 2012, Holmes arrived at the theater and purchased a ticket for a screening of The Dark Knight Rises and sat in the front row in a theater with around 400 people. After watching only twenty minutes, he left through an exit door he left open with a tablecloth holder and went to his car to dress in his tactical gear and retrieve his weapons. He then returned through the same door, most of the audience, many who were in costume, assuming he was also in costume, or he was a promotional stunt for the premiere or the theater itself. Holmes began by releasing two gas canisters to disorient and blind the crowd before opening fire. He moved from the back of the theater to the aisles and shot anyone in sight. A bullet went through the wall to theater 8, where three of the injuries were reported; the fire alarm sounded, and staff evacuated the adjacent theater. Twelve people were killed, seventy were injured, one murder victim being a 6-year-old girl and the oldest being 51, but most of them in their early adult years. Holmes fired 76 shots, mostly from his semi-auto rifle. Police response arrived within ninety seconds, even before Twitter and texts spread news of the shooting. Because of the chaos and crowd surges, ambulances struggled to reach victims, so much so that police used their cruisers as transport to send them to area hospitals.

Holmes was arrested by Jason Oviatt without resistance, next to his car behind the theater, after police realized he wasn't part of the response. He was regarded as "calm and detached", but watched the chaos and devastation of his assault from the police car. Several guns were found at the theater and in Holmes' car. Holmes warned lived explosives were wired at his apartment, leading to five buildings in his area being evacuated. The day after, the bomb squad diffused the trigger at the door, then sent a robot in to remove the rest of the explosives and the control box in the kitchen. Loud music was blaring from the apartment, one neighbor hitting the unlocked door and threatening to call the police, but not going inside. Residents in surrounding buildings were allowed back in after two days, residents of the campus building after six.

Trial and Aftermath[]

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Holmes in court

Victims were limited or pardoned medical bills by three of the hospitals who treated them. Ashley Moser, the mother of one of the murdered audience members, was left paraplegic and miscarried a week later. Caleb Medley was last to be discharged, having needed a feeding tube and went through three brain surgeries. He had lasting brain damage, restricted movement, couldn't speak, and suffered a shotgun blast that wounded his right eye. It was also revealed that one of the victims, a sports journalist named Jessica Ghawi, had left the food court at the Toronto Eaton Centre minutes prior to a deadly mass shooting seven weeks earlier while on vacation. Five men, Jonathan Blunk, John Larimer, Matt McQuinn, Jesse Childress, and Alexander C. Teves, died protecting their girlfriends or friends.

The Community First Foundation acquired $5 million for the victims and their families, sending them surveys on how they wanted to decide the money's distribution. The Aurora Victim Relief Fund provided 220 grand to each murder victim's family. International premieres and marketing for The Dark Knight Rises were cancelled, U.S. broadcast networks suspended ads, and he Gangster Squad trailer was removed.

A candlelight vigil was held at the theater the day after, that year's presidential election campaigns were paused for mourning the victims, and President Barack Obama visited victims and officials before publicly speaking against the attack. Director Christopher Nolan released a statement in sympathy for the victims and their families, regarding the massacre as a violation of a "home" he found the movie theater to be for him. Leader actor Christian Bale personally visited surviving victims at the memorial site, and Colorado Rockies baseball and Denver Broncos football teams paid visited and placed calls to survivors and families, including in the hospital. Film composer Hans Zimmer put together the honorary choral song "Aurora". The Crime Victims' Compensation Fund and Cinemark collectively paid funeral expenses. National and worldwide police security was increased to prevent copycat crimes, New York City going as far as stationing dispatch officers at theaters where the film was screening. The National Association of Theater Owners and homeland Security reviewed and revised their security plans to prevent further violence. Cinemark Theatres and the University of Colorado saw civil lawsuits, and the Aurora Strong Resilience Center was established as a community trauma center specifically for the shooting.

Reports circulated Holmes identified himself as "The Joker", the most iconic villain in the Batman franchise, to authorities, which was never confirmed. The rumors were also reinforced by Holmes' mug shot showing he died his curly hair red. Holmes was put under suicide watch and solitary confinement, both for his own protection. He was given a mandatory security order and regardless and not comprehending the situation he was in, let alone seemingly too confused to, and the state public defender was his primary representation. A gag order was placed for the trial and on the university, which media outlets legally challenged. Holmes was charged with murder with deliberation and extreme indifference, explosives possession, and incitement of violence, to increase the chances of conviction, with 152 charges present at the end of amendments. Holmes cropped his hair instead of dying it in his future court appearances. The trial's hearings were delayed due to medical emergencies, including Holmes' "half-hearted" repeat suicide attempts leading up to the dates.

Phone and video evidence was presented from the cinema complex, and prosecutors were allowed to keep what was found to be prescription bottles and immunization records from the apartment. The FBI presented Holmes' armor and weapons, which the jury examined for a half hour. Prosecution refused guilty pleas meant to dodge the death penalty, as that sentence was the intention of their efforts in the trial. Holmes changed to an insanity plea, and his defense tried to challenged the constitutionality of plea laws; the challenge was disregarded, but the plea was accepted. Holmes was briefly institutionalized in August, before being returned to jail. The trial was delayed for evaluation of Holmes' mental state, and it had the largest American jury summons, with criticism from certain candidates being related to victims and even the shooters of the Columbine High massacre.

The prosecution called out Holmes' planning, down to a classmate knowing of his urges four months prior, but the defense argued he suffered schizophrenia. Survivors were called by prosecution to testify to the attack and its traumatic effects. Holmes' planning notebook was admitted after arguments of whether it was relevant to his premeditation or mental state, which briefly kept it inadmissible due to doctor-patient confidentiality. The contents described his years-long violent ideology, his disinterest in life, unemployment, and health issues. Holmes reportedly believed the FBI was following him and wanted himself stopped before he carried out the shooting. Psychiatrist Dr. William Reid diagnosed Holmes with schizotypal personality disorder, deeming him mentally ill but sane by definition in law; the defense failed to acquire a mistrial shortly after. Jeffrey Metzner interviewed Holmes and came to the same conclusion of his sanity despite his problems, but diagnosing him with schizoaffective disorder. five jurors in total were dismissed on grounds of three discussing the case, one with a relative who was shot, and the last one recognizing a living victim. The victim who suffered paralysis and a miscarriage testified, before the prosecution rested. Holmes chose not to testify in defense, and his counsel showed him in footage demonstrating erratic and disturbed episodes, including slamming his head into a wall before silently sitting, and covering his head with bedding while restrained to a bed in the nude.

The jury found Holmes guilty on all murder and explosives counts, with the sentence enhancement for the violence of the crimes. They ruled Holes was aggravated, cruel, and lied in wait for an ambush, but agreed he had no focus on targeting children. Holmes made no allocution for the sentencing phase. His father pleaded for the jury to not order execution, which they ended up deadlocking in. The defense's final appeal didn't prevent a rejection of clemency. Holmes was sentenced by the presiding judge to consecutive life sentences without parole amounting to as many people he killed, adding over 3,000 years and ordering Holmes pay restitution to the victims and their families. Holmes was sent to the state penitentiary while deliberating his permanent placement. In October 2015, auto theft inmate Mark Daniels briefly attacked Holmes because of a security mistake, which led to Holmes' permanent transfer to USP Allenwood in Pennsylvania.

Gun sales and gun control propaganda both expedited as a result of the shooting, especially in political environments. The parents of one murder victim started advocacy against mass media refusing responsibility to limited coverage that doesn't encourage current and future perpetrators. Despite boycotts, the cleaned theater was reopened six months later, renamed Century Aurora, and the room where the shooting happened was combined with an adjacent theater. The Aurora Municipal Center hosts a memorial designed by Douwe Blumberg, with birds representing each dead and living victim, including the miscarried unborn child.

Modus Operandi[]

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Smith and Wesson M&P15

Holmes used two tear gas grenades to keep the victims in place before shooting at them with a Remington 870 Express Tactical 12-gauge shotgun, Smith & Wesson M&P15 sport rifle, and a Glock 22 pistol. He killed three victims, Alexander Boik, Jesse Childress, and Rebecca Wingo, using the shotgun and the rest with the rifle and pistol.

He also booby-trapped his house with a bomb before leaving to go out on his massacre. He dressed in protective gear including a gas mask and even guards for his throat and groin, along with a bulletproof helmet and leggings and a military vest. To prevent him from hearing the commotion in the theater, Holmes put on a set of headphones before the shooting and played techno music to listen to. Holmes also booby-trapped his apartment with an explosive wired at his door and 30 homemade grenades with a control box in the kitchen and a few dozen gallons of gasoline.

Known Victims[]

All of the following were attacked during the July 20, 2012 theater shooting.

Fatalities

  • Jonathan Blunk, 26 (shot in the back and head)
  • Alexander J. Boik, 18 (shot in the head)
  • Jesse Childress, 29 (shot in torso)
  • Gordon Cowden, 51 (shot once in chest)
  • Jessica Ghawi, 24 (a.k.a. Jessica Redfield) (shot six times in the limbs, head, and torso; pronounced dead at a hospital)
  • John Larimer, 27 (shot twice in chest and abdomen)
  • Matt McQuinn, 27 (shot nine times, including in the chest and neck (both fatally))
  • Micayla Medek, 23 (shot once in chest)
  • Veronica Moser-Sullivan, 6 (shot four times in the chest, limbs, and lower right side; pronounced dead at a hospital)
  • Alex Sullivan, 27 (shot once in chest)
  • Alexander C. Teves, 23 (shot once in head)
  • Rebecca Wingo, 32 (shot twice in head and twice in torso and leg)

Injuries

  • Petra Anderson, 22 (shot in face and arm)
  • Adan Avila (shot three times in right leg and left arm)
  • Jennifer Avila-Arredondo (Adan Avila's wife; shot in head)
  • Stephen Barton, 22 (shot in head and injured in neck and chest by shrapnel)
  • Toni Billapando (shot in face)
  • Christina Blanche (shot in legs)
  • Kelly Bowen (shot in right leg)
  • Jarrell Brooks (shot in left thigh)
  • Maria Carbonell (shot in right thigh)
  • Alejandra Cardona-Lamas (shot in right thigh)
  • Corbin Dates (shot in arm)
  • Kirstin Davis (shot in back and buttocks)
  • Louis Duran (shot in arm, chest, and head)
  • Lauren Ellis (shot in neck, back, and left shoulder)
  • Craig Enlund (Alex Teves's friend; was shot in face, shoulder, and arm)
  • Alex Espinoza (shot in upper arm)
  • Jacqueline Fry (shot in right arm, thigh, and buttocks)
  • Nickelas Gallup (shot in head)
  • Yousef Gharbi, 16 (shot in head and right arm; suffered brain injury)
  • Munirah "Moni" Gravelly (Jesse Childress's friend; shot in head, arm, and hand)
  • Eugene Han (Kirstin Davis's boyfriend; shot in leg and hip)
  • Nathan Juranek (shot in leg)
  • Jasmine Kennedy (shot in leg)
  • Marcus Kizzar (shot in legs)
  • Patricia Legarreta, 24 (shot in legs)
  • Brenton Lowak (Jessica Ghawi's friend; shot in hip, back, and buttocks)
  • Ryan Lumba, 18 (shot in hip, abdomen, chest, and arm)
  • Caleb Medley (shot in the face; suffered brain damage and was left physically disabled)
  • Katie Medley (Caleb Medley's wife; grazed in head by bullet)
  • Anggiat Mora, 44 (shot in face and eye)
  • Ashley Moser (Veronica Moser-Sullivan's mother; shot in chest and torso, miscarried a week after the shooting, and was left paralyzed)
  • Stefan Moton (shot in shoulder; was left paralyzed)
  • Victor Nava (shot in hand and arm)
  • Joshua Nowlan (Brandon Axelrod's friend; shot in right arm, abdomen, and leg)
  • Pierce O’Farrill (shot in arm and foot)
  • Prodeo Patria, 14 (Anggiat Mora's son; shot in lower back)
  • Rita Polina, 44 (Anggiat Mora's wife; shot three times in arm and leg)
  • Bonnie Pourciau, 18 (shot in left knee)
  • Christopher Rapoza (shot multiple times)
  • Carli Richards (shot in chest, back, arms, and legs)
  • Dion Roseborough (shot in shoulder)
  • Carey Rottman, 27 (Pierce O'Farrill's friend; shot in leg)
  • Lucas Smith (shot in right pelvis and thigh)
  • Heather Snyder (shot in right arm and hand)
  • Farrah Soudani (shot in abdomen)
  • Catherine Streib, 16 (shot in lower back and buttocks)
  • Daybra Thomas-Kizzar (Marcus Kizzar's wife; shot in abdomen)
  • Jamison Toews (Ashley Moser's girlfriend; grazed in head by bullet)
  • Denise Traynom-Axelrod (Brandon Axelrod's wife; shot in back and buttocks)
  • Marcus Weaver (Rebecca Wingo's friend; shot in shoulder, elbow, legs, and foot)
  • Michael White, Jr. (shot in right torso and shoulder)
  • David Williams (shot in left hand and finger)
  • Alleen Young (shot in chest and back)
  • Jansen Young (shot in torso)
  • Samantha Yowler (Matt McQuinn's girlfriend; shot in knee)
  • Three people injured in Theater 8:
    • Zackary Golditch, 17 (shot in neck)
    • Gage Hankins, 18 (shot in right arm)
    • McKayla Hicks (shot in face)
  • Twelve people injured indirectly. They are:
    • Brandon Axelrod (injured knee while attempting to flee)
    • Kaylin Bailey, 13 (injured by tear gas)
    • Shirley Clark (suffered minor head injury)
    • Evan Farris (fractured his ankle)
    • Hailee Hensley (injured by tear gas)
    • Amanda Hernandez-Menije (suffered minor head injury)
    • Richelle Hill (Evan Farris's girlfriend; injured by tear gas and suffered head injury)
    • Kelly Lewis (injured by tear gas)
    • Evan Morrison (dislocated his knee)
    • Caitlin Peddicord (Alex Teves's friend; injured her right knee)
    • Ethan Rohrs, 4 months (Patricia Legaretta's son)
    • Jamie Rohrs (Patricia Legaretta's son; injured his wrist and ankle)

Note: Holmes also booby-trapped his apartment with a bomb, but it was defused before it could do any damage.

On Criminal Minds[]

  • Season Eight
    • "Magnificent Light" - While never directly mentioned or referenced in the episode, Holmes appears to be a major inspiration for the episode's unsub, Carl Finster - Both are mentally unstable murderers with histories of hallucinations and suicidal ideation (though Holmes also attempted suicide), were regarded as problematic in their jobs by their superiors, had superhero fantasies pertaining to their murders (reportedly in Holmes' case, but this was later disregarded), turned to homicidal ideation from a change in their lives (Holmes' girlfriend broke up with him, Finster attended Barry Flynn's motivational seminars and was later a witnessed to a double murder), gathered equipment in preparation for mass scale crime sprees (though only Holmes went through with his), attended a public event as part of their sprees (where Holmes' crimes occurred, while Finster's crimes were committed elsewhere), were both active in 2012, were in possession of Glock pistols (though only Holmes used his), surrendered to arrest once caught, and resemble each other in appearance (except for when Holmes dyed and then later cut his hair). Coincidentally, the name of the psych specialist who interviewed Holmes is named William Reid, the same name as Spencer Reid’s father.
  • Season Thirteen
    • "False Flag" - The Aurora theatre shooting was one of several similar incidents that conspiracy theorist Melissa Miller claimed were staged by the U.S. government in order to increase gun control.

References[]

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