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The same jury will deliberate during the sentencing phase, slated to start Wednesday
Holmes, 27, faced 165 charges in the July 2012 shooting that left 12 people dead and 70 injured
He had pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity
(CNN) —
Will James Holmes face death for killing 12 people inside an Aurora, Colorado, movie theater?
That could be the next question jurors will be asked after finding Holmes guilty Thursday of first-degree murder in the July 2012 shooting.
Holmes faced two counts of first-degree murder for each of the 12 victims. The jury found him guilty on all 24 counts.
Holmes, who had pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity, showed no reaction as the verdict against him was announced. He stood at the defense table with his attorney, his hands in his pockets. He faced a total of 165 charges.
The jury also found Holmes guilty of attempted murder on all of the 140 counts against him for the 70 people wounded in the shooting. Additionally, he was found guilty of one count of possession or control of an explosive or incendiary device.
The gallery in the courtroom was full of survivors of the shooting and friends and family of the victims. Tissue boxes were underneath many of their seats. Before the reading, the mother of victim Jessica Ghawi was holding her daughter’s green scarf up to her eyes while she waited to hear the verdict.
When the judge read the first guilty verdict, family members let out an audible sigh. As the verdicts continued to be read, and people waited for the specific counts relating to their loved ones, family members started reaching out to one another – placing their hands on each others’ shoulders and backs in support.
Sandy Phillips, Ghawi’s mother, later cheered the verdict, saying: “We are very happy that this animal, that this monster, will never see the light of day.”
Jansen Young, the girlfriend of victim Jonathan Blunk, said she felt relief as the verdict was read.
“I didn’t know what I would feel when I came, but I just feel so much relief. Justice is here,” she told CNN affiliate KMGH. “This is a huge step forward today.”
The verdict was reached in almost 12½ hours: The jury began deliberations Wednesday morning.
A sentencing phase, which is expected to last about one month, is slated to begin next Wednesday. The same jury will deliberate during that phase. In 2013, the prosecution signaled it would seek the death penalty.
By virtue of his insanity plea, the now 27-year-old Holmes had never denied he was behind the killings. But given his mental state, his lawyers argued that he should not be found culpable.
“The evidence is clear that he could not control his thoughts, … he could not control his actions, and he could not control his perceptions,” defense attorney Dan King said during closing arguments.
King told the court psychosis had obscured Holmes’ ability to think about things the way a rational person does.
“Only the mental illness caused this to happen and nothing else.”
Prosecutors – who called more than 200 witnesses to the stand, among them investigators, students who knew Holmes and his ex-girlfriend – insisted the shooter knew well what he was doing. He acted deliberately to deliver pain and his mental issues shouldn’t excuse him from paying the price, they argued.
“Look at the evidence, then hold this man accountable,” Arapahoe County District Attorney George Brauchler said. “Reject this claim that he didn’t know right from wrong when he murdered those people and tried to kill the others. …
“That guy was sane beyond a reasonable doubt, and he needs to be held accountable for what he did.”
Having bought a ticket 12 days earlier, Holmes on July 19, 2012, walked into the theater No. 9 screening of “The Dark Knight Rises” like other patrons. He then walked out through a rear door, which he left propped open.
Just after midnight, some 18 minutes after the movie began, he returned wearing a ballistic helmet, a gas mask, black gloves and protective gear for his legs, throat and groin.
A tear gas canister exploded in the theater, then gunfire erupted from an AR-15 rifle, a 12-gauge shotgun and at least one .40 caliber handgun. The shooting stopped with Holmes’ arrest outside the theater about seven minutes after the first 911 calls were made to police.
But it wasn’t in time to save the lives of Jonathan Blunk, Alexander Boik, Jesse Childress, Gordon Cowden, Jessica Ghawi, John Thomas Larimer, Matthew McQuinn, Alex Sullivan, Alexander Teves, Rebecca Ann Wingo, Medek, and the youngest victim, Moser-Sullivan.
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Cynthia Davis, center, visits the roadside memorial set up for victims of the Colorado shooting massacre across the street from the Century 16 movie theater on Monday, July 30, 2012, in Aurora, Colorado. Twelve people were killed in the theater early July 20, 2012, during a screening of "The Dark Knight Rises." Suspect James Holmes was taken into custody shortly after the attack. More photos: Colorado movie theater shooting
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People visit the roadside memorial set up for victims of the massacre on Monday.
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Visitors pray around a cross at the memorial across the street from the theater on Saturday, July 28.
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Jeremy Blocker displays a new tattoo honoring the victims.
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Members of Alex Sullivan's family embrace at a memorial across the street from the Century 16 movie theater on Thursday, July 26.
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Hello Kitty-themed flowers are sent to shooting victim Micayla Medek's funeral Thursday in Denver.
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Pallbearers carry Micayla Medek's coffin during her funeral at the New Hope Baptist Church on Thursday.
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People visit a memorial across the street from the Century 16 movie theater on Thursday, July 26, in Aurora, Colorado.
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Angella Aquilis, left, and Maria Olivas mourn together at a makeshift memorial across the street from the Century 16 movie theater Wedesday, July 25.
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Yvonne Amaro, 9, prays for those injured and killed as she visits the memorial on Wednesday.
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Carrie Hensley, left, and Hailee Hensley mourn together on Wednesday.
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Kevin Flynn, left, Aurora Police top brass division chief, and Cmdr. Jack Daluz visit the makeshift memorial.
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A couple embraces as "Dark Knight Rises" star Christian Bale and his wife, Sandra Blazic, wait to place flowers at the memorial on Tuesday.
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Bale places flowers at the memorial while other mourners look on.
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Visitors pay tribute Tuesday, July 24, at the makeshift memorial.
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A cross stands at the makeshift memorial for victims across the street from the Century 16 theater on Tuesday.
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Greg Zanis of Aurora, Illinois, carries two of the 12 crosses he made for a makeshift memorial to the victims of last weekend's mass shooting at the Century 16 movie theater on Sunday, July 22.
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Greg Zanis writes the names of the victims of last weekend's mass shooting on the crosses before erecting them at the memorial across from the Century 16 movie theater on Sunday. Zanis, a carpenter, drove all night from Illinois to deliver the crosses.
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Parishioners pray during morning Mass, remembering victims of the theater shooting, at the Queen of Peace Catholic Church on Sunday.
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Angie Terry of Alabama prays next to a white wooden cross erected for victims.
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A man pauses before the crosses at the memorial near the Century 16 movie theater on Sunday.
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President Barack Obama embraces Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper as Sen. Mark Udall, left, and Sen. Michael Bennet look on during a visit to the University of Colorado Hospital on Sunday.
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Mourners bow their heads in prayer during the vigil for the victims of the Aurora shooting.
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A woman is overcome with emotion during the vigil.
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Tiffany Garcia, right, and her 6-year-old daughter, Angelina Garcia, cry on Saturday, July 21, as they look at a memorial for the victims of Friday's shooting.
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People pray at a cross erected at the makeshift memorial across the street from the Century 16 theater on Saturday.
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Family, friends and former classmates of movie theater shooting victim A.J. Boik gather for a memorial service at Gateway High School on Saturday.
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Boik and his girlfriend were at the midnight showing of 'The Dark Knight Rises' when a gunman killed Boik and 11 other people.
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Movie theater shooting victim A.J. Boik's girlfriend, Lasamoa Croft, center, embraces his mother during the memorial service.
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Eman Alexander, 17, pins a ribbon on his shirt while joining family, friends and former classmates to honor shooting victim A.J. Boik.
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