[77], On August 9, Holmes' attorneys said he is mentally ill and they needed more time to assess the nature of his illness. This post examines a series of unsolved attacks and murders that occurred in January, 1984 in the Lakewood suburb of Denver, Colorado. The movie theatre is my home, and the idea that someone would violate that innocent and hopeful place in such an unbearably savage way is devastating to me. Triple-homicide suspect accused of killing mother, siblings. Sgt. There is nothing that can change anything. On July 28, Holmes' father pleaded for his son's life, stating that he is severely mentally ill. [28], At about 12:45a.m., police officer Jason Oviatt apprehended Holmes[11][29] behind the cinema, next to his car, without resistance. The passenger sees something in the ditch and makes the driver go back. James Holmes / Aurora, Colorado Movie Theater Shooting < Prev Chapter. [138] Members of the Denver Broncos also called or visited individuals at the hospitals. Nearly three years later, Holmes was found guilty of all the 165 counts brought against him, and he was sentenced . On March 23, Boulder, Colorado officials announced that Ahmed Alissa is being charged with 10 counts of murder in the first degree. Henry from the My Corona series.". She was found bludgeoned with a hammer, with about 17 wounds to the head. Shelly Bradbury is the courts reporter at the Denver Post. A lifetime ago on a Sunday night, Connie Bennett taught her 7-year-old granddaughter to pick out a melody on a chord organ, an early birthday gift shed nabbed from a thrift store for the girl, whod turn 8 in two days. Twelve people were killed and 70 injured. The 27-year-old - also convicted on . [170] This type of lawsuit had been anticipated in an August 2012 article co-authored by bioethicist Arthur Caplan which discussed the applicability of the landmark California Supreme Court decision in Tarasoff v. Regents of the University of California (1976) to the facts of the Aurora shooting. [163][164] On January 24, 2013, U.S. Magistrate Judge Michael Hegarty issued a recommendation that most of the claims be thrown out, as they were not allowable under Colorado law. [83] On April 1, the prosecution announced it had declined the offer. Intent on revenge, he visited the restaurant at approximately 9:00pm. On Jan. 28, reports were made of gunshots outside Dick's Sporting Goods. Because theyre gone. 57-yr old. It made it very difficult for her to lead a normal life She doesnt really remember anything about the initial attack, but over the years she had a lot of nightmares., The familys slaying was part of a string of hammer attacks in January 1984 that former Aurora police Chief Nick Metz said shocked the conscience of our community.. AURORA, Neb. [175] The shooting reignited the political debate on gun control, with one issue being the "easy access" Holmes had to semi-automatic rifles and high-capacity magazines, which were banned federally from 1994 to 2004. He is accused of opening fire in a movie theater July 20, 2012, in Aurora, Colorado, killing 12 people and wounding 70. [14] Initially, few in the audience considered Holmes to be a threat. Investigators interviewed Martinez after reading him his Miranda Rights and he told them he picked up Kaden after he got off work on Friday, Dec. 9 around 5 p.m. Ahead of the People Magazine Investigates' episode titled The Colorado Hammer Killer, which is scheduled to arrive this Monday, July 11, here are five appalling facts about Alex Ewing. . James Holmes, one of the Colorado Serial Killers. Police are searching for a suspect accused of shooting and killing four adults in the early hours of Sunday morning at a home in Aurora, Colorado . [113] President Barack Obama ordered flags at government buildings flown at half-staff, in tribute to the victims, until July 25. [98], By July 10, the prosecution and the defense rested their cases. [171], A grassroots community center, Aurora Strong Resilience Center, was established by community leaders, elected officials, and mental health professionals, as a response to the shooting. [65], Ashley Moser, Veronica Moser-Sullivan's mother, suffered critical injuries after being shot in the chest. [30] He was described as being calm and "disconnected" during his arrest. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. December 11, 2022 / 9:35 AM / CBS Colorado. COLORADO SPRINGS He remembers the hum of the vacuum cleaner, the sound of closing time at the Aurora Chuck E. Cheese restaurant where he worked in 1993.. CNN . Denver7 News brings you breaking and developing news from Aurora, Colorado on KMGH-TV and TheDenverChannel.com. Its affected her in so many ways, not only physically but emotionally, Connie said. [141][142] The film's release date was rescheduled to January 2013, and the theater scene was replaced by a new sequence in a different setting. On August 7, the jury deadlocked on whether to impose the death penalty. Some believed he was playing a prank,[15] while others thought he was part of a special effects setup for the film's premiere, or a publicity stunt by the studio or theater management. CENTENNIAL, Colo. (AP) A former Nevada prison inmate was convicted Friday of first-degree murder in the long-unsolved 1984 hammer and knife slayings of three Colorado family members, including a 7-year-old girl. Police say DNA evidence links Alex Ewing to the 1984 murders of three members of Bruce and Debra Bennett and their 7-year-old daughter Melissa, left. [63], The injured were treated at Children's Hospital Colorado, Denver Health Medical Center, The Medical Center of Aurora, Parker Adventist Hospital, Rose Medical Center, Swedish Hospital, and University Hospital. [9], Holmes went to his car (which he had parked near the exit door), changed into protective clothing, and retrieved his guns. Connie raised Vanessa after the killings, and for years feared the killer would come back. On July 16, 2015, James Holmes was found guilty on all 165 counts against . [31][32] Three days later, at his first court appearance in Centennial, Colorado, Holmes's hair appeared reddish-orange. [39] Speaking on behalf of himself and FBI agent James Yacone, who was in charge of the investigation, Aurora Police Chief Dan Oates said he was confident that the shooter acted alone. [137] Members of the Colorado Rockies baseball team also visited victims. [44], Neighbors reported loud music from the apartment around midnight on the night of the massacre, and one went to his door to tell him she was calling the police; she said the door seemed to be unlocked, but she chose not to open it. DNA evidence ties Ewing to the crime. [64][failed verification] On July 25, three of the five hospitals treating victims announced they would limit medical bills or forgive them entirely. [135], Christopher Nolan, the film's director, spoke on behalf of his cast and crew and called the event "savage" and "devastating". Earlier, he had rigged his apartment with homemade explosives and incendiary devices. Fortunately, they survived the attack. Police arrived and took Martinez, his grandfather and the family friend to the station to interview them. A Colorado man who brutality murdered a couple and their 7-year-old daughter in 1984, beating them to death with a hammer, was handed down three consecutive life sentences Tuesday. He said he had a fight with his mom over his room being dirty but told them it was small and was not a big deal.. She still struggles to speak about the details of the attack, and chokes up when she thinks of the assault and murder of Melissa, whom she said was a sweet little girl. Debra was a family-focused woman who enjoyed spending time with her aunts in Lakewood, Connie said. Ketia Daniel, founder of BHM Cleaning Co., is BestReviews cleaning expert. He was ultimately detained for attacking Nancy and Chris Barry in Henderson on August 9 of the same year in Nevada using an ax handle. Denver's independent source of In Pittsburgh, she helped the newspaper earn the 2019 Pulitzer Prize for breaking news after a mass shooting at a local synagogue, and in 2020 she was named a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize in local reporting for an investigation into child sexual abuse among Amish and Mennonite communities. Holmes faces 166 counts, almost all alleging murder or attempted murder. Although it took authorities nearly four decades to . In September 2016, Cinemark dropped all claims for reimbursement of legal fees. Follow @dh_ssarkauskas. [81][clarification needed], Also on January 7, lawyers for both sides argued whether to admit four unspecified prescription bottles and immunization records investigators had seized from Holmes' apartment when they searched it in July 2012, considering doctor-patient confidentiality laws. She joined the paper in 2019 and previously worked as a crime reporter at the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette in Pennsylvania and the Chattanooga Times Free Press in Tennessee. Aurora James, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Gemma Chan, and Prabal Gurung (L-R) attend The 2021 Met Gala in New York Credit: Kevin Mazure/Getty Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, the firebrand left-wing . [169], On January 14, 2013, Chantel Blunk, estranged wife and widow of victim Jonathan Blunk, filed a lawsuit against the University of Colorado in federal court. Ewing, who fought extradition to Colorado, has pleaded not guilty and is represented by public defenders; their office did not return a request for comment Thursday. Bloody bootprints were found throughout the house. Only 3-year-old Vanessa, at right, survived. He then dragged Marisol into the bedroom with Estancia and shot them. [36] Holmes was found carrying a first aid kit and spike strips, which he later admitted in an interview he had planned to use if police either shot at or chased him. A blood trail led from the hallway outside the bedroom to the downstairs living room, where Bruces body was found. The Bennetts were dressed for bed when they were attacked. [94], On June 9, three jurors were dismissed from the trial due to concerns of their violating orders not to talk about news reports about the case. He had serious brain damage and an injury to his right eye from a shotgun blast to the head, and underwent three brain surgeries. He remembers the sight of his co-worker, just a teenager, lying motionless on a blood-soaked floor. On July 20, 2012, a mass shooting occurred inside a Century 16 movie theater in Aurora, Colorado, United States, during a midnight screening of the film The Dark Knight Rises. Two charges were filed for each victim to expand the opportunities for prosecutors to obtain convictions. [35] The officers found several firearms in the theater and inside the shooter's car, including another Glock 22 handgun.