Colorado shootings suspect to enter insanity plea

[NoGOPZone]

Source: Associated Press

DENVER (AP) — Lawyers for the man accused of killing 12 people and injuring 70 in a Colorado movie theater say he wants to change his plea to not guilty by reason of insanity.

Attorneys for James Holmes said in a court filing Tuesday they plan to formally ask for the change of plea at a May 13 hearing.

A judge in the case previously entered a standard not guilty plea for Holmes.


Read more: http://news.yahoo.com/colorado-shootings-suspect-enter-insanity-plea-211825401.htm

[AtheistCrusader]

1. First reasonable decision i've seen him make.

[Xipe Totec]

4. You're undermining his case... nt

[AtheistCrusader]

6. Rational behavior now doesn't imply competence then.

I think he has a hard row to hoe here, to prove actual incompetence, given the premeditation of his act. The amount of preparation that went into it is going to boggle a jury face with deciding how competent he was.

[Xipe Totec]

7. That was meant as a joke.

[AtheistCrusader]

8. iSorry...

[Still Sensible]

2. I don't think that can fly, despite him getting treatment

but it obviously depends on the state of Colorado legal standard.

It sure seems to me that the fact he booby-trapped his apartment in anticipation of law enforcement would go a long way to show he knew what he was doing, he was following a well thought out plan and he knew right from wrong.

[freshwest]

5. Guess it would depend on what they can prove about his condition. It wasn't spur of the moment.

But his lawyers can argue he had a psychotic break which lasted for some weeks.

I witnessed one that lasted for nearly a month straight. After two weeks without medication in the hope he would restore his sleep cycle as he had been sleep deprived for some time and had PTSD, medication was attempted.

Two weeks of anti-pyschotic medication brought him back, as he had a nightmare going on in his head no one could break through. He was able to eat, dress himself, shower, walk around, etc. but responded to nothing done to him until then.

It was a break through and he continues to have to be given prescriptions carefully for over ten years since that time. Even so, he has had serious setbacks from medication changes to prevent liver problems and had psychotic breaks several times seriously assaulting people around him whom he identified as others from the past who had harmed him but were not there, but now is stable in care.

We'll never know what the attorneys or doctors will find, but the example above might have appeared normal if he wasn't in a hospital ward being observed day and night for his behavior. Holmes wasn't in a psych ward. Doctors may find proof of a psychotic break. That may fit the legal definition of insanity for Holmes. It did for the person I described above.

We may not like to accept that is why he did it, and it doesn't excuse the crime, nor am I saying he should go free. But if he is found have been insane, his problem may continue to be so profound he may never be able to walk around without supervision again.

JHMO. Not an attorney. Not a doctor. Just an experience.

[Tx4obama]

3. Kick n/t