James Holmes and the Insanity Defense

I’m not a lawyer.  Nor am I a psychologist.   As an electrical engineer

Photo Courtesy of USAToday

I know nothing about the intricacies of the law or the brain.  I do, however, consider myself fairly well-spoken, well-educated and can be rather insightful at times.  And I have to be honest: James Holmes scares the hell out of me.

By now everyone’s aware of Holmes, the suspected mass-murderer that gunned down 12 people, wounding an additional 58, and scarring so many more.

But let me rephrase my initial statement: I’m not afraid of James Holmes; I’m afraid that he won’t get the maximum sentence allowed to such criminals.  I’m afraid that his defense team, well, lawyer, will use the insanity plea so convincingly that it will somehow influence the court’s decision, but it doesn’t fit this particular case.

I’m scared because unlike some states, the burden of proof in the insanity defense in Colorado falls on the state, not on the defendant.

Look, a person – any person – that commits such evil atrocities must have something wrong with them, but it doesn’t necessarily suggest insanity.  And in Holmes’ case there’s one aspect that’s widely been glossed over, a fact that more than suggests he’s competent to stand trial for his crimes.

“Will you visit me in prison?”

Holmes wrote it in his Adult Friend Finder profile – verified by TMZ to be authentic – just days prior to his murders.

“Will you visit me in prison?”

It’s chilling, really.  These aren’t the words of a psychologically broken man.  No.  These are the words of a premeditated murder.  It shows forethought.  It’s a forewarning.  But more importantly, it shows a cognizance, an awareness of cause and effect, of right and wrong, of action and consequence.  It is, in my opinion, an admission of guilt.

A lot has been made about his notebook of jumbled thoughts and drawings recently.  That might have been enough to convince a jury that he’s unstable, depending what is actually in there.  But not without that quote, though.

Whether or not he sent the notebook weeks or days prior to the incident doesn’t matter.  That quote – which, again, was created just days before the shootings – shows a clear, calculated thought immediately before the incident.

“Will you visit me in prison?”

James Holmes has plethora of mental issues.  And I don’t need a doctorate to tell me that.  But, again, by his own admission he already knows the consequences of his actions.  Authorities have already stated that this took months to plan, and yet, just days before the shooting he wrote: “Will you visit me in prison?”

James Holmes isn’t insane.  And I’m scared the prosecution won’t be able to convince a jury of that.