Colorado prosecutors have charged James Holmes – the 24-year-old accused of killing 12 and injuring 58 others at an Aurora, Colo., movie theater on July 20 – with 24 counts of murder on Monday.
Holmes was charged with two counts of first-degree murder for each victim who died – one for allegedly intending to cause harm and the other for allegedly acting with extreme indifference to human life, court documents say. He was also charged with 116 counts of attempted murder, in addition to one count of possession of explosives and another of committing a crime of violence.
The charges carry a minimum sentence of life in prison and a maximum of the death penalty.
Holmes appeared in court and reportedly exchanged a few words with his attorneys but did not enter any pleas. He, otherwise, didn’t speak and appeared emotionless.
During the hearing, Colorado District Court Judge William Blair Sylvester set aside a week in November for a preliminary hearing, as well as an Aug. 16 date to hear a motion that Holmes’s attorneys filed seeking to learn whether or not police or prosecutors leaked information about a notebook Holmes allegedly sent to a University of Colorado psychiatrist detailing his plans for the attack.
