Accused movie theater gunman James Holmes bought his ticket to the midnight screening of “Dark Knight Rises” 12 days prior to the shooting, police officials said Monday.
The testimony came on the first day of a preliminary hearing in Aurora, Colo. Prosecutors presented witness testimony and evidence to outline their case against Holmes, accused of killing 12 and wounding dozens in the packed movie theater on July 20, 2012.
Details of the night of the shooting emerged and much of the testimony was emotionally charged.
Among the revelations Monday:
>> There is no surveillance video of the actual shooting. However, surveillance footage shown in court for the first time shows Holmes lingering by the concession stand for about three minutes before entering theater nine dressed in dark pants, a light colored shirt and a skull cap. He would later be caught wearing a bullet proof vest and a gas mask.
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>> The police officer who took Holmes into custody said he mistook him for another policeman because he was wearing a gas mask and helmet. Officer Jason Oviatt said that as he got closer he realized he was not an officer and held Holmes at gunpoint.
>> Holmes was extremely compliant during his arrest, the officer said. "He was very, very relaxed," Oviatt said. "These were not normal reactions to anything. He seemed very detached from it all." Holmes had extremely dilated pupils and smelled badly when he was arrested, he testified.
>> After he was arrested, Holmes volunteered that he had four guns and that there were "improvised explosive devices" in his apartment and that they would go off if the police triggered them.
One officer choked up when he described finding the body of a 6-year-old girl inside the theater.
Sgt. Gerald Jonsgaard needed a moment to compose himself as he described finding the little girl, Veronica Moser Sullivan, in the blood splattered theater.
An officer felt for a pulse and thought Veronica was still alive, Jonsgaard said, but the officer then realized he was feeling his own pulse.
Holmes was dressed for the court hearing in a red jumpsuit and has brown hair and a full beard. He did not show any reaction when the officers pointed him out in the courtroom.
The hearing at the Arapahoe County District Court could last all week. At the end, Judge William Sylvester will decide whether the case will go to trial.