The start of the multiple murder trial of James Holmes -- the man accused of shooting dead 12 people inside an Aurora , Colorado , movie theater -- has been set for October 14 , a courts spokesman said . Arapahoe County District Judge Carlos Samour set the trial date for Holmes , according to Colorado state courts spokesman Rob McCallum . Earlier this month , the same judge ordered an additional , independent sanity examination for Holmes that must be filed by July 14 . Prosecutors are seeking the death penalty against Holmes , who is accused of opening fire in a packed movie theater during a July 2012 midnight showing of the latest Batman installment , `` The Dark Knight Rises . '' Authorities have said Holmes was dressed head to toe in protective gear . He allegedly threw tear-gas canisters in the theater and then opened fire on the patrons , according to witnesses . Police say he used several weapons , including an AR-15 rifle , before fleeing the theater . Outside the theater , the shooter was apprehended , identifying himself to police as `` The Joker , '' one of Batman 's archenemies . He faces 166 charges tied to the rampage . He has pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity . Prosecutors have argued that Holmes began plotting the attack while enrolled as a neuroscience doctoral student at the University of Colorado 's Anschutz Medical Campus , a program he left a month before the mass shooting . The defense , meanwhile , appears to be focused not so much on what Holmes allegedly did that night but his mental state then and earlier .
A Aurora judge sets an October 14 trial date for Holmes . Holmes faces 12 charges tied to a mass shooting at an Anschutz Medical Campus movie theater . Authorities have claimed that he plotted out the attack well in advance . The defense has centered around James Holmes ' mental state .