Families Of Colorado Shooting Victims Meet The Press
LITTLETON, COLORADO – July 20, 2015 (Gephardt Daily) –
A little over three years ago a confused and troubled man walked into a crowded theater and killed 12 people. He wounded dozens more.
Now, that same disturbed man faces the death penalty, after being found guilty of first degree murder in a Littleton, Colorado courtroom.
Shortly after the verdict was read, victims’ family members gathered to share their thoughts with the media, including Gephardt Daily’s Jamie Cowen.
These are Cowen’s notes from outside the courtroom Friday:
Listening to the interview of the victims who spoke to the very large group of national and local media assembled.
Discovered the unwritten rules between the victims and the media.
James Holmes is to be referred to, not by his given name, but as “The Shooter.”
The families sincerely request his mugshot should no longer be shown even though it is perhaps one of thee strangest mugshots in American history. That image is forever burned into America’s soul.
Tom Feres, father of murder victim, Alex Teres, speaking to the assembled media … “Really think about what you are doing,” he said.
“I realize you have to make money. I also get that you have to get the message out. Stop being gratuitous. Stop making him into a hero. He is not a hero. He is a dirtbag, who killed real people and injured real people and they will be injured for life when you guys move on to the next thing.”
Prosecutors are pursuing the death penalty against “The Shooter” as they move into the trial’s penalty phase.
Jurors will now determine whether or not aggravating circumstances surrounding the killings warrant the death penalty. They’ll also weigh potentially mitigating circumstance surrounding Holmes’s mental health.
The proceedings could last up to a month.
I don’t see how anyone is making him a HERO… Not one media outlet has portrayed him that way. I feel for these families… I cannot possibly begin to understand or comprehend what they are going through. The media is reporting what he did, and the process of his trial. America wants to see justice for these families… and that is what the media is reporting.