Aurora Theater James Holmes Shooter Tells Psychiatrist: You Can't Kill Everyone

Court dismisses fourth juror in shooting trial

Photo: RJ Sangosti/The Denver Post/Getty

Months before Aurora theater shooter James Holmes went on a spree that left 12 people dead and 70 injured, he met with a University of Colorado psychiatrist and told her about his “homicidal thoughts,” she testified before a jury on Tuesday.

Dr. Lynn Fenton was one of the last mental-health professionals to meet with Holmes while he was a student on campus. During his sessions, he told her about his obsessive-compulsive disorder, which included thoughts about killing people, she testified.

“The solution to the biological problem would be to eliminate the problem: homicide,” she told the court, according to reports in The Denver Post. “But you can’t kill everyone, so it’s not an effective solution.”

Fenton and another psychiatrist saw him on June 11, 2012, nine days before his shooting spree, and he told them he was dropping out of school, but he discussed getting a job and not breaking his apartment lease, she testified.

“We were feeling better, I guess, about the situation that he had these logical plans,” Fenton said on Day 32 of Holmes’ trial, according to reports.

Holmes has pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity. If convicted, he could face the death penalty.

Meanwhile, a fourth juror was dismissed from the jury on Monday after the court learned that her brother-in-law was shot in an armed robbery a week ago and were concerned how it might impact her, according to reports. Three other jurors were dismissed last week after discussing information that the jurors should not have known about.

There are 20 jurors and alternates left to hear testimony for the duration of the trial.

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