Theater shooting survivor Josh Nowlan says though he is very religious, he鈥檚 not opposed to the gunman receiving death in this case. 聽鈥淥n to the next phase,鈥� he said Monday.
By Kelsey Ray
CU News Corps
CENTENNIAL, Colo. 鈥� James Holmes is still eligible for the death penalty, a jury determined Monday.
After three hours of deliberation, all 12 jurors have determined that the mitigating factors of the case, including Holmes鈥� mental illness, normal childhood and relationships with family and friends, do NOT outweigh the aggravating factors of his crime. During the next phase of the sentencing trial,聽each juror聽must make the individual, moral decision of whether to sentence Holmes to death.聽
鈥淲hen does mitigation outweigh aggravation?鈥� defense attorney Tamara Brady asked jurors during her closing arguments Thursday. 鈥淲hen the mitigation is the cause of the aggravation. The mental illness鈥he psychosis is what caused James Holmes to shoot the people in the Century 16 theater.鈥�
Brady encouraged jurors not to drag out the trial unnecessarily, urging them to speak up now if they don鈥檛 think they will be able to sentence Holmes to death. Monday鈥檚 verdict shows that not a single juror did so.
In 聽case like this, that鈥檚 not uncommon at this stage,聽says defense attorney David Lane.
鈥淛urors will frequently say, 鈥淵es, the crime was so horrendous that there could be nothing worse鈥攖he aggravation outweighs the mitigation,鈥� he said.
But Holmes鈥� mental illness may still save his life in the next phase.
鈥淎 number of jurors might feel, in their own personal judgments, that it would be wrong to sentence a mentally ill person to death,鈥� Lane said.
Former prosecutor Bob Grant聽disagrees. 鈥淚 think it鈥檚 odds on that they will find a death penalty verdict,鈥� he said. To Grant, who prosecuted Colorado鈥檚 last case to lead to an execution, the best argument in Holmes鈥� defense is one his attorneys failed to make.
鈥淚 don鈥檛 think they鈥檝e made the right argument, and that argument is that society could have prevented this,鈥� he said.
鈥淚 think they were just banking on the sympathy factor.鈥�
The defense is unlikely to present any more evidence during Phase 3, Grant said. Jurors can expect to hear more emotional testimony from shooting victims about how the crime has impacted their lives.
Court will resume Tuesday at 10 a.m.