James Holmes offers guilty plea to avoid death penalty

James Holmes offers guilty plea to avoid death penalty

Michael Winter, USA TODAY4:46p.m. EDT March 27, 2013

Suspect in Colorado theater mass shooting facing August trial.

Attorneys for Denver-area theater shooting suspect James Holmes have offered to have him plead guilty and be jailed for life to avoid the death penalty, KUSA-TV is reporting.

The prosecution has not yet responded to the offer, which came in a court filing Wednesday.

"Mr. Holmes is currently willing to resolve the case to bring the proceedings to a speedy and definite conclusion," the filing reads.

The defense team said the case could end Monday if the Arapahoe County district attorney accepts the deal. Prosecutors planned to announce Monday whether they would seek the death penalty.

The 25-year-old Holmes is charged with first-degree murder for the July 20 rampage that killed 12 moviegoers and wounded nearly 60 others at the premiere of the latest Batman film at a multiplex in Aurora.

On March 12, a judge entered a not guilty plea on Holmes' behalf Tuesday but said he could enter a plea of not guilty by reason of insanity later.

STORY: Aurora mass shooting suspect's court appearance a rarity

Trial is set for Aug. 5.

The Denver TV station, owned by Gannett, USA TODAY's parent, notes that a similar plea deal was offered to Tucson mass-shooter Jared Loughner. The federal government withdrew the death penalty after he pleaded guilty to killing six and wounding 13, including former U.S. congresswoman Gabby Giffords, in January 2011.

Loughner was sentenced to seven consecutive life terms and an additional 140 years.

Arizona authorities have just released crime reports from the case, which had been sealed by court order.

James Holmes offers guilty plea to avoid death penalty

RELATED

http://www.alipac.us/f9/tucson-shoot...leased-274934/

RELATED Aurora mass shooting suspect's court appearance a rarity

Colorado prosecutors shun James Holmes' guilty plea offer

Associated Press
March 28, 2013, 5:33 p.m.

DENVER — Prosecutors said Thursday they are not ready to accept an offer from Colorado theater shooting suspect James E. Holmes to plead guilty in exchange for avoiding the death penalty.


In a court filing, prosecutors criticized defense attorneys for publicizing Holmes’ offer to plead guilty, calling it a ploy meant to draw the public and the judge into what should be private plea negotiations.

They say the defense has “steadfastly and repeatedly” refused to provide key details they need to consider a plea.

No agreement exists, and one “is extremely unlikely based on the present information available to the prosecution.”

Legal experts say the case pivots on whether Holmes was legally insane when he opened fire in a packed theater in Aurora, killing 12 people.

Holmes’ attorneys disclosed in a court filing Wednesday that their client has offered to plead guilty to killing 12 people at a midnight screening of the latest Batman movie, but only if he wouldn't be executed.

Prosecutors say defense attorneys are trying to pull the judge into a possible plea agreement, and they criticized comments to the media, including the Associated Press, from Doug Wilson, who heads the state public defenders' office.

Wilson didn't immediately return a call Thursday.

George Brauchler, the current Arapahoe County district attorney, is scheduled to announce Monday whether he will seek the death penalty for Holmes. Brauchler hasn't publicly revealed his plans. He has refused repeatedly to comment on the case, citing a gag order and his spokesman didn't immediately return a call Thursday evening.

ALSO:

Jared Loughner's father says son changed after expulsion, job loss

Colorado prosecutors shun James Holmes' guilty plea offer - latimes.com