July 23, 2014
UPDATE: James Holmes Pleads Not Guilty
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FILE - In this July 23, 2012 file photo, James E. Holmes appears in Arapahoe County District Court in Centennial, Colo. Lawyers for Holmes have indicated their client might plead not guilty by reason of insanity. In court documents made public Friday, March 1, 2013, James Holmes' attorneys want the judge to declare portions of the state's insanity defense laws unconstitutional. The filings say the laws in which a defendant may waive their right to remain silent and reveal confidential medical information should be unconstitutional in cases involving the possibility of execution. (AP Photo/Denver Post, RJ Sangosti, Pool, File)
UPDATE
CENTENNIAL, Colo. (AP) -- Judge enters not guilty plea on behalf of Holmes in deadly Colorado theater shooting.
The judge says Holmes can change his plea to not guilty by reason of insanity later, if he chooses.
A defense lawyer said he didn't know how much time was needed. Prosecutors asked the judge to keep the case moving ahead.
Holmes sat silently at Tuesday's hearing with unruly hair and thick beard.
If convicted, Holmes could be executed or spend the rest of his life in prison.
He's charged with multiple counts of murder and attempted murder. Twelve people were killed and 70 wounded in the July 20 attack on moviegoers in Aurora.
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CENTENNIAL, Colo. (AP) -- An arraignment hearing is under way in a Denver suburb for James Holmes, the man charged with an attack last summer at a movie theater.
Many expect Holmes to plead not guilty by reason of insanity. If that happens, he'll get a mental evaluation to determine whether he could distinguish right from wrong.
If he's acquitted on the grounds of insanity, he would be committed indefinitely to the state mental hospital. If jurors find him guilty, he could be sentenced to execution or life in prison.
Holmes is charged with killing 12 people and injuring 70 in the July 20 shootings at a midnight showing of "The Dark Knight Rises" in Aurora.
