James Holmes’ Parents Attempt To Give Defense Member Note, Asked To Leave Court April 30, 2015 at 1:23 pm Filed Under: Aurora Movie Shooting , James Holmes , Jason Oviatt siblings: Chris Holmes. He stopped going to the clinic when he withdrew from school in June of that year. "It’s my determination and my intention that in this case, for James Eagan Holmes, justice is death," Brauchler said, according to NBC News. On September 19, the prosecution filed a motion to add new charges against Holmes. Television news crews gather in front of the home of Robert and Arlene Holmes, parents of James Eagan Holmes, 24, who is accused of killing 12 and injuring 58 people in … Bob and Arlene Holmes, parents of Aurora theater shooter James Holmes. They saw a family counselor for years. Robert and Arlene Holmes, parents of Aurora theater shooting suspect James Holmes, at the Arapahoe County Justice Center last year. We strive for accuracy and fairness. For the three months James Holmes has been on trial, Robert and Arlene Holmes have sat quietly behind him. Holmes graduated from Westview High School in Rancho Penasquitos, California, in … He had no known criminal background before the shooting occurred. Holmes had mailed Fenton, the campus clinic psychiatrist, a notebook about his mental illness and homicidal thoughts hours before the shootings, but it wasn't discovered until days after the tragedy. this link is to an external site that may or may not meet accessibility guidelines. Their sole public statement had been a letter they penned to prosecutors asking for his life to be spared. Robert and Arlene Holmes, parents of Aurora theater shooting suspect James Holmes, walk from the courtroom at the Arapahoe County Justice Center for a hearing in 2014. (AP) Colorado movie theater gunman James Holmes is “not a monster” and should be spared a death sentence, his parents plead in their first public comments since one of the worst mass shootings in American history. Initially, James Holmes did everything right that society told him to do. Holmes's hair had been dyed red, resembling that of the Joker, a well-known Batman villain. In 1966, Richard Speck committed one of the most horrifying mass murders in American history when he brutalized and killed eight student nurses living on Chicago's South Side. RJ Sangosti / The Denver Post via AP, file, Aurora Theater Shooting Trial: Holmes’ Parents Plead for Mercy. "I assumed he was depressed, but that was our main concern," Robert Holmes said. Following his arrest, Holmes was held in solitary confinement at the Arapahoe Detention Center. That summer, he interned at the Salk Institute of Biological Studies. Although his trial was scheduled to begin in October 2014, it was delayed when his lawyers asked for a continuance. Holmes "had a high volume of deliveries," Aurora Police Chief Dan Oates told the Associated Press. Holmes enrolled at the University of Colorado in June 2011, taking graduate courses in neuroscience at the university's Denver campus. His father, Robert, a mathematician with degrees from Stanford University and the University of California, Berkeley, chews on his fingernails. James Holmes was found guilty of murdering 12 people and wounding 70 in a Colorado shooting rampage on July 20, 2012. Seven days later, he was charged with 24 counts of first-degree murder and 116 counts of attempted murder, as well as two charges related to the possession of serious weapons. The shooting was truly awful, and the grief and even anger of the victims' families is entirely comprehensible. Tuesday was the first time either of Holmes’ parents had spoken publicly since the July 2012 "Dark Knight" theater massacre. Suspect James Holmes's Mother Speaks Out in New Book. H.H. James Earl Ray is infamous for assassinating civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr. in 1968. Jon Schuppe writes about crime, justice and related matters for NBC News. Robert and Arlene Holmes, parents of Aurora theater shooting suspect James Holmes, arrive in court in 2013. https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/james-holmes-parents-n399691 The same jury convicted Holmes of the massacre this month, rejecting defense lawyers' arguments that he was legally insane at the time of the attack. In March 2013, Holmes made an offer to plead guilty to the charges in exchange for life in prison without the possibility of parole. On July 16, 2015, a jury found Holmes guilty of 24 counts of first-degree murder, two counts for each of the 12 victims. By the time James Holmes graduated high school and went on to study at the University of California at Riverside, not that much had changed, his father testified. According to media reports, police officers who responded to the scene found Holmes near the theater, wearing a gas mask and body armor. mother: Arlene Holmes. - They show up in court every day, a visible reminder to jurors that even a killer has parents who love him and who don't want him to die. During the 1893 Columbian Exposition, he lured victims into his elaborate 'Murder Castle.'. Holmes graduated from Westview High School in Rancho Penasquitos, California, in 2006. After his arrest, Holmes reportedly told authorities that he had rigged his apartment with the explosive devices. IE 11 is not supported. Prior to this incident, Holmes did not have a criminal record. Before the shooting, Holmes booby-trapped his apartment with explosives, which were defused one day later by a bomb squad. The father of convicted Colorado movie theater shooter James Holmes ended a three-year public silence on Tuesday, taking the stand at his son's sentencing to make a final plea to save him from execution. Holmes had allegedly begun planning the movie theater shooting approximately four months before the incident. James Holmes was found guilty of killing 12 people and injuring 70 in a shooting rampage at a Colorado movie theater on July 20, 2012. Robert and Arlene Holmes, parents of Aurora theater gunman James Holmes, walk from the courtroom at the Arapahoe County Justice Center last year. He was smart, ambitious, motivated. Scott Peterson is best known as the man who murdered his eight-month pregnant wife, Laci, and their unborn child in 2002. Robert and Arlene Holmes are the parents of accused movie theater shooter James Holmes. He had a good life … Shortly after the incident, police arrested 24-year-old Holmes, who was wearing a gas mask and body armor at the time. James Eagan Holmes (born December 13, 1987) is an American mass murderer responsible for the 2012 Aurora, Colorado shooting in which he killed 12 people and injured 70 others (62 directly and eight indirectly) at a Century 16 movie theater on July 20, 2012. Ever since their son allegedly committed one of the worst U.S. mass shootings, the parents … The father described his son as being "pretty affectionate" with his parents and younger sister, as a regular soccer player, a good student and a video game enthusiast. He was a "good guy". © 2021 Biography and the Biography logo are registered trademarks of A&E Television Networks, LLC. Andrew Cunanan was a murderer who killed fashion designer Gianni Versace, and at least four other people, before committing suicide in a Miami houseboat. Serial killer Edmund Kemper murdered six young women in the Santa Cruz, California, area and several members of his family. The father's testimony, which was to be followed by that of his wife, Arlene, marked the first time either of them have spoken publicly since the shooting, in which their son opened fire in a crowded midnight screening of "The Dark Knight Rises" in Aurora, Colorado, killing 12 people and injuring 70. 6:48. This move would have allowed Holmes to avoid the death penalty. But he was still doing well in school, still participating in sports," Robert Holmes said. The incident took place at a movie theater in Aurora, Colorado, where a screening of the 2012 Batman film The Dark Knight Rises was playing. The police were able to eliminate and remove the dangerous materials. He had also dyed his hair red to resemble the Joker, a well-known Batman villain. The parents of convicted shooter James Holmes took the stand in the sentencing phase of the trial. "He had a few friends he hung out with, but generally, socially, he seemed pretty isolated. Jury selection began in January 2015 and lasted for three months. Robert Holmes said he and his wife had no idea before the July 2012 massacre that their eldest child was mentally ill, or harbored impulses to kill. Robert Holmes also walked the jury through his son's early years, narrating family photos and home videos that depicted a typical, happy childhood — the beach, camping, Halloween. "use strict";(function(){var insertion=document.getElementById("citation-access-date");var date=new Date().toLocaleDateString(undefined,{month:"long",day:"numeric",year:"numeric"});insertion.parentElement.replaceChild(document.createTextNode(date),insertion)})(); Subscribe to the Biography newsletter to receive stories about the people who shaped our world and the stories that shaped their lives. Holmes went on to the University of California, Riverside, where he earned a bachelor's degree in neuroscience in 2010. James Holmes applied to more graduate schools, and was accepted to the University of Colorado at Denver. Eric Harris, along with Dylan Klebold, shot and killed 13 people and injured 20 at Columbine High School on April 20, 1999. He had booby-trapped his home so that anyone who entered would be hurt or killed. Learn More. James Eagan Holmes was born on December 13, 1987, in San Diego, California. James Holmes' social life began to deteriorate when the family moved from northern California to San Diego for middle school and high school. Their son did give his parents reasons to worry in the months before the July 2012 attack, they said. In early 2012, Holmes began seeing Lynne Fenton, a University of Colorado psychiatrist, at a campus clinic. But the state doctors also testified that he could distinguish right from wrong, the legal criteria in Colorado to prove sanity. Robert and Arlene Holmes, parents of Aurora shooter James Holmes, walk from a courtroom in 2014 Chris Holmes said her brother had trouble adjusting when they moved from Salinas to … On July 20, 2012, Holmes was identified by police as a suspect in a Colorado shooting that killed 12 individuals and wounded 70. First things first: if your child is one of the major American ‘crime horror stories’ of the past decade, the decisions you make can sometimes be perplexing. "We think this explains how he got his hands on the magazine, ammunition." Notorious As: Mass Murderer. He reportedly received numerous packages at his apartment and at the university during this time. Parents of Colorado theater gunman James Holmes keep a lonely vigil. They told the Colorado jury that their son is mentally ill and should not receive the death penalty. The Arapahoe Country District Attorney George Brauchler was unwilling to accept a life sentence for Holmes, believing that the accused deserved a more severe punishment for his alleged crimes. James Holmes, convicted of a mass murder at a movie theater in Aurora, Colorado. Robert and Arlene Holmes, the parents of Aurora, Colo., gunman James E. Holmes, leave court last … James Holmes lived with his parents Robert and Arlene Holmes in Rancho Penasquitos By R. Stickney and Wendy Fry • Published July 23, 2012 • Updated on July 24, 2012 at 4:11 am He also purchased various weapons, including a military-style AR-15 assault rifle that was used during the attack. More Facts. But the prosecutors rejected his offer, choosing instead to move forward with the case against Holmes. Videos you watch may be added to the TV's watch history and influence TV recommendations. Anders Behring Breivik is the admitted perpetrator of the July 2011 attacks in Norway that killed 77 people. "It didn't seem like he was happy.". Murderers American Men. If you see something that doesn't look right, contact us! If playback doesn't begin shortly, try restarting your device. But the parents of the nearly ten million U.S. children with serious mental illness, children like James Holmes, feel differently. He was also found guilty of 140 counts of attempted murder for the 70 people wounded and guilty of one count of possession or control of an explosive or incendiary device. Police identified 24-year-old James Holmes as the suspect and arrested him shortly after the incident. Police block entry into the Aurora Century 16 theater after James Holmes … Height: 1.85 m. Family: father: Robert Holmes. James Eagan Holmes was born on December 13, 1987, in San Diego, California. The judge in the deadly Colorado movie theater shooting case entered a not guilty plea on behalf of James Holmes on Tuesday, which marked the first time his parents appeared in … Parents of James Holmes Search for Answers, Work for Awareness about Mental Illness - Duration: 6:48. For an optimal experience visit our site on another browser. The trial began on April 27, 2015. DENVER -- For the first time since their son killed 12 people inside an Aurora movie theater on July 20, 2012, the parents of James Holmes have spoken out. The father, a retired financial fraud analyst who admitted to having trouble expressing his own emotions, also said he still loved his son. Don’t kill our son, the parents of Aurora, Colorado, movie theater shooting suspect James Holmes pleaded Friday in their first public statement since the July 2012 attack that left 12 people dead. Holmes was the alias of one of America's first serial killers. On May 31, 2013, Holmes' attorneys changed his plea to not guilty by reason of insanity. He had trouble making friends, and seemed isolated, even though he continued to earn good grades, his father testified. Parents of Colorado Shooter James Holmes Say He Has Severe Mental Illness Arlene and Tom Holmes want their son to be spared the death penalty; family members of … James Holmes’ parents plead for him to be spared from death penalty Holmes, 24 at the time of the shooting, was ultimately sentenced to 12 life … Their testimony is expected to cap the defense team's effort to persuade the jury to sentence Holmes to life in prison. "That was one of my worries," Robert Holmes said. James Holmes initially failed to get into graduate school, where he wanted to study neuroscience. In prison, Holmes experienced psychotic episodes and was hospitalized after allegedly attempting suicide by running headfirst into a wall. Two state psychiatrists and two defense psychiatrists agreed Holmes suffers from mental illness. Rocky Mountain PBS 49,796 views. On July 16, 2015, after an 11-week trial and over 12 hours of deliberation, a jury found Holmes guilty of 24 counts of first-degree murder, two counts for each of the 12 victims. We see the verdict as a huge step backward, a clear message that the stigma and discrimination associated with mental illness is as strong as ever, and … Asked by a defense lawyer why, Robert Holmes responded, "Well, he’s my son and, you know, we always got along pretty well and he was actually an excellent kid.". But Robert Holmes that he and his wife never had any indication that their son developed mental illness, even in the weeks before the shooting, when he broke up with his girlfriend and dropped out of graduate school in Colorado. A jury sentenced him to death by lethal injection. He parents sit stoically, several rows back. James Holmes' parents, Robert and Arlene Holmes, arrive at district court for the arraignment of their son in Centennial, Colo. (Ed Andrieski/AP) DENVER — In a letter to prosecutors released Friday, the parents of accused Aurora movie theater killer James Holmes asked for his life to be spared. Getty Images Arlene wants parents to know they're not hopeless if their child has a mental illness. James Holmes' parents in court every day DON EMMERT/AFP/GettyImages. During one of his college summers, he worked as a camp counselor for underprivileged kids in Los Angeles in 2008. Jesse James was a bank and train robber in the American Old West, best known as the leading member of the James-Younger gang of outlaws. The incident took place at a movie theater in Aurora, Colorado, a suburb not far from Denver, where theater patrons were watching the newly released Batman series film The Dark Knight Rises. You might have seen this: James Holmes’ parents, Robert and Arlene, are saying he should be spared the death penalty — and a trial — and instead just be institutionalized. https://www.biography.com/crime-figure/james-holmes. Holmes made his first court appearance on July 23, 2012. He moved back home and worked nights in a factory, where he seemed disappointed. He was also found guilty of 140 counts of attempted murder for the 70 people wounded and guilty of one count of possession or control of an explosive or incendiary device. He said he wasn't concerned, because he saw a lot of himself in his son. "He said he was having trouble in school," said his mother, Arlene Holmes. Six years ago, on July 20, 2012, 12 people were killed and dozens more injured at a midnight showing of Batman: The Dark Knight Rises, when James Holmes opened fire in an Aurora, Colorado, theater.At the time, the incident produced the largest number of casualties from one shooting on American soil. 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