Now that a curious and angry public has finally caught a glimpse of Colorado theatre shooting suspect James Holmes, the conversation has turned to whether or not his will be made a capital case. As Veteran U.S. legal analyst Andrew Cohen wrote on The Atlantic’s website on Sunday evening, it’s a safe bet to assume that the answer is yes — despite the fact that Colorado executes far fewer people than other states, particularly those to its southeast.
Despite Colorado’s reluctance to execute, Cohen writes, Holmes’s case falls within the jurisdiction of Arapahoe County District Attorney Carol Chambers, whose gusto in pursuit of death sentences has made her “a sort of national symbol in the criminal justice systems’ eternal war over capital punishment” and who “has the experience, talent and intellect necessary to prosecute the coming Holmes case in a productive way.”
Thus far, all Chambers has said is that the families of the victims need time to determine whether they wish to pursue the death penalty in the case against Holmes. “Victims will be impacted by that decision in an enormous way for years if the death penalty is sought,” she said at a press conference yesterday, following Holmes’s first hearing. “That’s a very long process that impacts their lives for years, and so…we will want to get their input before we make any decision on that.”
Chambers, however, is approaching the end of her term; her successor will be elected in November. Denver reporter Alan Prendergast told Cohen via email that because of this time limitation, be believes Chambers will likely “work quickly to prepare a possible capital case against Holmes” during the time she has left in office.
Predergast has written extensively about Chambers, who made headlines prior to the theatre shooting for her frequent use of “habitual criminal” charges to lengthen the jail terms of repeat offenders, and for launching a crusade against judicial delays in her county, which was nicknamed “Arapahell” by defense attorneys due to its inefficient court system.