Aurora, Colo., Theater Shooter James Holmes Found Guilty

After a long series of deliberations by the jurors, James Holmes was found guilty of first degree murder for the Colorado theater rampage in July 2012. And Megan, the jury found Holmes guilty of two counts, actually, of first-degree murder for each of the people killed in the attack and for attempted murder for those injured. He faced a total of 165 charges. He was also charged with one count of possessing an explosive device.

#Jurors passed a box of tissue as #TheaterShooting verdict read. The father of Alex Teves, one of the victims killed during the massacre July 20, 2012, low-fived a deputy sheriff in a celebratory action after hearing the verdicts. Weaver said he wept while watching a livestream of the judge reading the verdicts.

CORNISH: So once again, this all gets back to his mental state.

Sandy Phillips, whose daughter Jessica Ghawi was killed in the shooting, holds a T-shirt bearing the names of the 12 victims.

“I felt so much relief”. “I will forever be effected, but I don’t feel like my life is hindered by fear”. “Justice is here”, Young said, as reported by CNN. “This is a huge step forward today”.

Survivors and their loved ones gathered outside the rain-swept courthouse on Thursday evening, after Holmes was convicted of killing 12 people and wounding 70 inside a Denver-area theater.

The proceedings next move to the sentencing stage, in which Holmes could face the death penalty. On Wednesday, the jury, still under a gag order, will start the sentencing phase.

As The Christian Science Monitor has previously reported, Coloradans have mixed feelings about the death penalty.

James Holmes pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity.

State-appointed forensic psychiatrists claimed that James E. Holmes was mentally ill.

King told the court psychosis had obscured Holmes’ ability to think about things the way a rational person does. Defense lawyers said schizophrenia had been growing inside Holmes’ mind for years and eventually overwhelmed him in 2012, creating a delusion that he could improve his self-worth by killing others and absorbing their value.

And all of that, prosecutors argued, showed that Holmes was thinking and functioning rationally and that he knew the difference between right and wrong. His critics included the lead prosecutor in the Holmes case, District Attorney George Brauchler. The horrifying incident took place in the town of Aurora, inside a suburban Denver movie theater that was showing a midnight screening of The Dark Knight Rises. He then walked out through a rear door, which he left propped open. He re-entered 18 minutes into the movie, wearing a helmet, gas mask and protective clothing. During the trial this year, victims and others offered tearful, pained stories of what happened inside the theater and what has happened since.

Jenkins said she has undergone therapy following the shooting, and has returned to watching movies inside theaters.