The second court-ordered psychiatrist to examine the Aurora movie theater gunman will be able to opine about James Holmes’ sanity at trial, a judge ruled Friday.
Defense attorneys for Holmes had tried , arguing that it was unnecessary because it reached similar conclusions to the first psychiatrist’s report — something Judge Carlos Samour called an “I told you so” argument. But Samour rejected the request and also disagreed that the reports reach the same conclusion.
, which was heavily redacted, adds to the ongoing behind-the-scenes tussle over the case’s most significant question: Was Holmes sane when he killed 12 people and wounded 58 others through gunfire inside the Century Aurora 16 movie theater in 2012? At least six mental health professionals — including Reid and the first court-ordered examiner, Dr. Jeffrey Metzner — at trial about Holmes’ mental health. Because Holmes has , his mental state at the time of the attack is the biggest question jurors will have to answer.
None of the experts’ opinions on Holmes’ sanity have been made public, and Samour was careful in his order not to divulge details of Reid’s or Metzner’s conclusions.
After Holmes’ insanity plea, Samour ordered Holmes to undergo an independent sanity evaluation — a task for which Metzner was eventually chosen. Prosecutors, though, , and Samour subsequently .
While jury selection in the case is expected to begin in January, evidence likely won’t start being presented at trial until June.
John Ingold: 303-954-1068, jingold@denverpost.com or twitter.com/johningold
