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| Aurora theater gunman James Holmes sentenced to life in prison | Aurora theater gunman James Holmes sentenced to life in prison |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| Convicted gunman James Holmes will spend the rest of his life in prison after jurors in his trial for a 2012 movie theater shooting failed to reach a unanimous decision on sentencing him to death. | |
| Holmes stood with his hands in his pockets as Judge Carlos Samour Jr read the jury’s decision, which was reached after about six and a half hours over two days. In order for a death sentence to have been handed down, all twelve jurors must be unanimous in their decision. | |
| “We the jury do not have a unanimous final sentencing verdict,” Samour Jr read as shock swept the audience of victims and their family members. “As a result, the court will impose a sentence of life imprisonment without the possibility of parole.” | |
| “Shit,” a loved one of one of the victims in the audience whispered under her breath after it became clear that Holmes would not be sentenced to death. One man in the audience leapt up and ran out of the courtroom after Samour read the first of 24 sentencing verdicts. | |
| Many who stayed behind wept in their seats, shaking their heads in disbelief at the verdict. The parents of Jessica Ghawi, a 24-year-old girl who was killed in the Aurora theater shooting, held hands with each other with and Josh Nolan, another theater victim who was left badly wounded. He closed his eyes and hung his head down. | |
| The gunman’s parents held each other as they stood a few feet behind him during the sentencing announcement. Holmes, clad in a gray button-up shirt, sat motionless. | |
| It is not yet known how the nine women and three men of the jury ultimately voted on each count. However, under Colorado law, in order for a death sentence to be handed down, all twelve jurors had to be unanimous in their decision. | |
| Prior to Samour’s pronouncement, Victims and family members exchanged hugs, knowing it would be their last time together in Courtroom 201 after an emotionally-taxing three-month trial. District Attorney George Brauchler had appeared upbeat, chatting with guards outside the courtroom. | |
| The trial now moves to a sentencing hearing beginning on 24 August. | |
| The sentence was surprising to many who followed the trial. Twice during the three-part sentencing phase, jurors indicated they were moving toward a death sentence. Polled by Quinnipiac University last month, nearly two-thirds of Colorado voters said they supported a death sentence for Holmes. | |
| Holmes was found guilty on 17 July of 165 separate charges, including murder in the first degree. At issue was not whether Holmes perpetrated the shooting rampage on 20 July 2012, but rather whether his schizophrenia had rendered him legally insane at the time of the killings, as his defense team unsuccessfully insisted. Twelve people were killed and 70 others injured in the shooting. | |
| Following the guilty verdict last month, the trial entered the sentencing phase. For three weeks, jurors heard testimony from victims, their family members, as well as Holmes’ mother and father. | |
| “Schizophrenia chose him. He didn’t choose it,” Arlene Holmes, James’ mother, told jurors on 29 July. “I still love my son. I still do.” | “Schizophrenia chose him. He didn’t choose it,” Arlene Holmes, James’ mother, told jurors on 29 July. “I still love my son. I still do.” |
| Numerous members of the jury were moved to tears when victims told their story on the stand, including Ashley Moser, who lost her six-year-old daughter Veronica Moser-Sullivan and suffered a miscarriage in the attack. | |
| “You cannot get them justice and you should not seek it,” district attorney George Brauchler said during his closing remarks in the sentencing phase. “But you can get justice to this act. And to him. To James Eagan Holmes justice is death. It’s death.” | “You cannot get them justice and you should not seek it,” district attorney George Brauchler said during his closing remarks in the sentencing phase. “But you can get justice to this act. And to him. To James Eagan Holmes justice is death. It’s death.” |
| Defense lawyer Tamara Brady countered: “The deaths of all of those people cannot be answered by another death.” | Defense lawyer Tamara Brady countered: “The deaths of all of those people cannot be answered by another death.” |
| “Please, no more death,” she told the jurors. “He will be punished. He will be punished severely and he will be punished for the rest of his life.” | “Please, no more death,” she told the jurors. “He will be punished. He will be punished severely and he will be punished for the rest of his life.” |
| Before releasing them to deliberate, judge Carlos Samour Jr imparted on jurors the weight of their task. This “may well be the most serious and important decision you ever have to make,” he said, and insisted that they each use “their own individual reasoned moral judgment” in deciding Holmes’ fate. | Before releasing them to deliberate, judge Carlos Samour Jr imparted on jurors the weight of their task. This “may well be the most serious and important decision you ever have to make,” he said, and insisted that they each use “their own individual reasoned moral judgment” in deciding Holmes’ fate. |
| Reuters contributed to this report | Reuters contributed to this report |