Colorado shooting suspect James Holmes appears dazed in court
Holmes in court, July 23, 2012. (AP/Pool)
UPDATE: 11:30 a.m. ET: James Holmes, the suspect in the Colorado theater massacre, appeared in a Colorado courtroom on Monday. A judge advised Holmes of his Miranda rights, and that there was probable cause to continue to hold him without bond on suspicion of first-degree murder.
Holmes, who was transported from from a holding cell to the courtroom via an underground tunnel, appeared dazed: his brow furrowed, his eyes opening and closing often. His hair was dyed red. He did not speak.
Seated in a jury box next public defender Tamara Brady, Holmes never looked towards a gallery that included about two dozen victims and victims advocates.
The preliminary hearing lasted for about 11 minutes. Holmes' next court appearance is July 30.
EARLIER:
CENTENNIAL, Colo.—The public will get its first look at the alleged movie theater gunman Monday morning when suspect James Holmes appears in a Colorado courtroom.
Monday's hearing, which will be broadcast live on television and the Web, is scheduled for 9:30 a.m. MDT (11:30 EDT) and could be very brief. Under Colorado law, Holmes will be advised of his rights, but few other details could emerge.
A decision on whether to seek the death penalty could be weeks or months away, District Attorney Carol Chambers told reporters as she entered the courthouse.
"It will be a conversation we have with the victims before we make that decision," Chambers said.
Holmes, 24, is accused of blasting his way through a packed movie theater on Friday in Aurora, Colo., during a midnight screening of "Dark Knight Rises."
Twelve people died and 58 others were injured in the shooting. The rampage is among the worst mass shootings in modern-day American history.
[COMPLETE COVERAGE: Colorado theater shooting]
Holmes, clad in full body armor, surrendered to officers in a parking lot behind the cinema. He did not resist arrest, but investigators have since described the former medical student as uncooperative.
Authorities and news reports have portrayed the native Californian as smart and shy, but no motive for the shooting spree has surfaced.
Federal investigators were dispatched to assist local authorities with the investigation, but officials have indicated justice will be sought in a state courtroom.
Colorado has a death penalty, but only one inmate has been executed since 1977. Three inmates are currently on death row, according to the Death Penalty Information Center.
"If James Holmes isn't executed," former Denver prosecutor Craig Silverman told Reuters, "Colorado may as well throw away its death penalty law."
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