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Jury Selection in Colo. Theater Shooting Trial Will Take Weeks: Expert

Unlike most states, Colorado puts the burden on the prosecution to prove a defendant is not insane

Jury selection begins Tuesday in the trial of a former San Diego man accused of a Colorado movie theater massacre.

James Holmes, 27, could face the death penalty if convicted of killing 12 people and injuring 70 more. He has pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity

Holmes once lived with his parents, Robert and Arlene, in Rancho Penasquitos and attended Westview High School, as well as UC Riverside.

Shooting Suspect James Holmes' San Diego Home: Images

The prosecution and defense have depicted different sides of Holmes, but which one will the jurors see? A cold-blooded killer, or a man so mentally ill that in a psychotic episode, he orchestrated one of the worst mass killings in U.S. history?

Toni Blake is a jury consultant by day and a psychology professor at Mesa College by night. Death penalty cases are her specialty

“It's going to take several weeks. They are going to have to screen thousands of jurors,” Blake said. [[289153981,C]]

Nine thousand summons were mailed to prospective jurors of Arapahoe County, Colorado -- nearly one for every 50 residents. Finding 12 jurors and 12 alternates who will agree to impartially weigh the evidence against Holmes will not be easy. [[289056061,C]]

“The prosecution wants somebody who is less sympathetic to mental illness, somebody who says, ‘Nope it doesn't matter,’” Blake said.

The defense is looking for just the opposite. Court filings claim Holmes was in the throes of a psychotic episode at the time of the shooting.

According to Blake, both sides will not be looking strictly at demographics. They will also weigh personality types and exposure to mental illness.

Neighbors, who asked not to be identified, say 24-year-old James Holmes “was off.” Another neighbor described him as “socially awkward, quiet and sometimes, would just stare.” NBC 7s Brandi Powell reports.

The trial will be held in the same jurisdiction where the defendant fired multiple shots in a crowded Aurora theater during a "The Dark Knight Rises" showing in July 2012. [[289095861,C]]

Prosecutors say for two years before the shooting, Holmes amassed a cache of weapons, ammunition and explosives. He even booby trapped his apartment for anyone who might enter.

“It's going to very, very difficult. It's in the jurisdiction where every time these people go to the movie theater, they think about this,” said Blake.

She believes this is the prosecutor’s case to lose.

The suspect in the Colorado movie theater shooting, a graduate of Westview High School in San Diego, was dressed all in black and wore tactical battle gear. Aurora, Colo., Police Chief Dan Oates updates the public about 11 hours after the deadly rampage.

Unlike most states though, Colorado has a burden on the prosecution to prove the defendant is not insane.

Also in that state, Blake pointed out, the defense needs just one juror to vote for life in prison, and the death penalty is thrown out, leaving the prosecution with no opportunity to appeal it.

NBC 7s Megan Tevrizian reports from Sparren Avenue, outside the family home of James Holmes. Holmes was arrested after a midnight shooting inside an Aurora, Colorado movie theater showing the new Batman movie.

Holmes’ parents pleaded for his life to be spared in a letter released in December. They say their son is “not a monster” and should not get the death penalty because he is mentally ill.

Facial Expressions of Movie Massacre Suspect James Holmes in Court

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