Ashley Moser didn’t want to testify in the trial of Aurora theater shooter James Holmes.
She didn’t want to face the man who is accused of gunning her down on July 20, 2012, putting her in a wheelchair for the rest of her life, killing her 6-year-old daughter Veronica and the baby in her womb.
The trial date had been hanging over her head for years. As it approached, Ashley wasn’t sure that she could go through with it — even with all she has been through.
But she knew how important it was, that prosecutors were saving her for their last witness, that they wanted her to make a big impact for the jury.
So Ashley testified with poise, and faced her fears.
In an Arapahoe County courtroom nearly three years after the shooting, on June 19, Ashley Moser — my niece — slowly maneuvered her wheelchair before all gathered for trial to bravely face Holmes, a cold-blooded killer.
In her testimony, Ashley took those in the courtroom back to the scene of the crime in Theater 9, where Holmes unleashed his fury on unsuspecting moviegoers. Thirty minutes into the movie, canisters were thrown, emitting smoke and gas. Gunshots rang out.
Curious to see what was happening, Ashley stood while holding the hand of Veronica, who was seated next to her. Immediately, Ashley felt a searing bullet penetrate her thigh, then two more enter her upper back. One bullet lodged permanently in her spine, while the other exited her chest, partially destroying her lung. Ashley collapsed on her daughter, and tried to determine if Veronica was breathing.
In a mere 13 minutes, Ashley’s dreams and hopes were dashed. Dazed movie patrons, not unlike lambs led to slaughter, were screaming and crying as they ran blindly to safety through the exit doors. Those were the lucky ones, the survivors.
Throughout Ashley’s testimony, family members and strangers alike sobbed uncontrollably. I was holding the hand of my mother — Ashley’s 91-year-old grandmother — as she quietly wept, when a young man seated behind us leaned forward to tenderly stroke her arm.
My thoughts wandered back to 2012. That spring, the Moser family had been shrouded in sorrow from the untimely passing of Ashley’s father, my brother — who, ironically, died two months to the day before the Aurora shooting. Then, in July, we learned that Ashley had been accepted into nursing school. That summer, Veronica was the proud kindergarten graduate who had taken her first swimming lessons and was spending “special time” with her mother.
Who could predict the horror that awaited Ashley and Veronica?
The outpouring of love Ashley has received since the shooting has acted like an elixir, fortifying her spirit. Gradually, Ashley has rebuilt her life and is forging meaningful pathways. She adamantly refuses to be considered a victim of James Holmes. Instead, she is resolute in triumphing over any and all obstacles that stand in her way.
When Ashley testified on June 19, I scrutinized Holmes’ face for a flicker of emotion. But he never flinched. It seemed as if all humanity had vanished.
Even though Holmes was acknowledged to have had a keen intellect, I believe he fundamentally lacks the emotions necessary to make connections with others. In an act of desperation, he embraced the evil that consumed him, like a moth drawn to a flame.
Holmes felt compelled to improve his self worth by masterminding the Aurora theater shooting and booby-trapping his apartment with explosives. He designed a point system wherein the “human capital” he massacred were worth one point per life. Those who ended up wounded were deemed “human collateral.” By accumulating as many points as possible, he believed that his mission was accomplished.
He is a pathetic human being. When the trial is over and publicity dissipates, James Holmes will fade into oblivion. Regardless of the outcome of the Aurora trial, he still awaits a far greater judgment in the eyes of God. His day of reckoning is yet to come.
MaryEllen Hansen is the aunt of Ashley Moser. She wrote this on behalf of the Moser family.
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