The prosecutors in the Colorado theater massacre case have rejected an offer from suspect James Holmes to plead guilty in exchange for avoiding the death penalty, the Huffington Post reported. The report said the proposal cannot be considered genuine because the defense has repeatedly refused to give them information needed to evaluate it.
No plea agreement exists, prosecutors said in the court document on Thursday, and one "is extremely unlikely based on the present information available to the prosecution... the defendant knows that he is guilty, the defense attorneys know that he is guilty, and that both of them know that he was not criminally insane," it read.
Holmes is charged with 166 counts of murder and attempted murder in the July 20 shootings at an Aurora cinema. Twelve people were killed and 70 were injured.
Prosecutors criticized defense attorneys for publicizing the offer, and even called it a ploy, drawing the public and the judge into what should be private plea negotiations.
"One of the issues the prosecution needs to look at is, is there a likelihood that doctors, and then a jury, could find that James Holmes was insane at the time of the crime?", Karen Steinhauser said. Steinhauser is a former prosecutor who is now an adjunct professor at the University of Denver's law school.
George Brauchler, the Arapahoe County district attorney, is scheduled to announce Monday whether he will seek the death penalty for Holmes. He has refused repeatedly to comment on the case, citing a gag order.
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