Sobbing victims told how the Colorado movie massacre gunman wrecked their lives, testifying on Monday as a three-day hearing began at which James Holmes will be formally sentenced to life in prison with no parole.
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A jury found Holmes guilty of 165 counts of first-degree murder, attempted murder and explosive charges stemming from the July 20, 2012, mass shooting inside a Denver-area multiplex during a midnight screening of a Batman movie.
Holmes will also have an opportunity to speak, though he declined to do so during his trial. He says responders have struggled with depression and nightmares since that night.
Colorado theater shooter James Holmes looks like a prisoner again. She said she couldn’t speculate on what kind of prison routine Holmes or any inmate would have.
Holmes was dressed in civilian clothes, usually a button-up shirt, throughout his four-month trial.
“There’s no human language that can convey the pain I have witnessed seize ahold of my family”, said Kristian Cowden, whose father Gordon Cowden was the oldest of 12 people gunned down by Holmes in the attack. Now that he has been convicted, he is not permitted to wear regular clothes. For the six convictions of second-degree attempted murder, the shooter will be sentenced from 30 to 96 years in prison. Under Colorado law, he must automatically serve 12 consecutive life sentences without the possibility of parole.
The sentencing hearing is expected to last a few days.
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About 100 people are set to give victim impact statements at this week’s hearing, the Arapahoe County District Attorney’s Office said in a statement.
