For the past couple of weeks I have been recreating the events of July 20, 2012 in Aurora, Colorado when it was alleged that a lone gunman, James Holmes, entered a crowded theater and killed 12 and injured 58 others in what was then at the time, the worse mass shooting in US history. According to the Chief of Police of Aurora, Dan Oates, the first officer on scene arrived 90 seconds after the first 911 call. Additionally, official information released at trial will later claim that James Holmes was in custody within a minute and a half to two minutes after the shooting started. We also know that the shooting began at 12:39 am MST on July 20th which means, according to official sources, James Holmes was in custody by 12:41 to 12:42 am. Let’s review what police and fire were reporting at this time, as well as eye-witness testimony. This is where it starts to get weird folks, so buckle up!
July 20, 2012 12:41 am
At 12:41 am (approximately two minutes after the first 911 calls), a police lieutenant (as designated by his call sign of “Lincoln”) is heard calling in over recorded police channels.
“Lincoln twenty-five, give me cops on the back side of it also.” To be clear, Lincoln twenty-five is requesting additional units on the back side of the theater where the shooter allegedly entered and exited theater nine. It is perhaps a small discrepancy at this point but already this calls in to question an official statement made later by Chief of Police Dan Oates who will claim the first officer was at the back of the theater within 90 seconds. While it is possible there was already an officer out back when Lincoln twenty-five calls for additional assistance, it seems highly unlikely based on the rest of the audio. Let’s continue.
Meanwhile, there are other officers now reporting on air at this time. One is calling for an ambulance at the corner of Expo and Sable Avenue. Remember, Sable Avenue is the street that runs behind the theater and is also referred to at times on air as the Sable side” of the building. Note that at this point no mention is made on the police audio that the shooter is in custody. No mention has been made of seeing him exit the theater nor is there mention of seeing him standing out back of the theater at any point. This will become important later so remember there is no talk of the shooter out back at this time.
In a later blog post we will discuss more of the official testimony made during the trial but it should briefly be noted that during the pre-trial hearing in January of 2013, police officers confirmed that James Holmes was found “standing” outside of the theater “within two minutes of the initial 911 calls”. That would be right about now in our time analysis and, as you will note, NO mention of having Holmes in custody is being made. In fact, it won’t be made for some time. Perhaps it seems trivial to split hairs over whether the shooter was in custody two or four minutes after the shooting, but the more discrepancies there are, the less likely it is that we are getting the full truth and, as you will see, the discrepancies start to really add up.
July 20, 2012, 12:42 am
It’s 12:42 am now and, according to official reports following the event, the shooter should have already stopped his shooting rampage and should have been apprehended in or by his car (the details of that are still up for debate). As you will soon see, this simply cannot be true. James Holmes is in not custody at this time.
On the Aurora Fire Department dispatch channel the calm female dispatcher reports that multiple victims are being staged outside the theater. Up to four victims are reported so far and the fire department dispatch has alerted everyone they are going to need some gas masks to enter the theater.
It is still at 12:42 am when officer 316 is overheard on police radio saying, “316, I got people saying theater nine still.”
The key word here is “still”. It appears the shooter is “still” shooting at this time. At this point it should be noted there is no one that will come on air and correct him saying that the shooter is out back or that he has been detained. In fact, the police dispatcher responds, “Yeah, all of our RP’s are saying theater nine, where Batman was playing? Another RP is saying they are still shooting.” For those unfamiliar with the term RP, it stands for “reporting persons”. So again, it appears everyone that is reporting in is in agreement the shooter is still active and still shooting.
At this time, Aurora Fire dispatch is reporting on air, “…we just are having units get into the scene now. There may still be somebody actively shooting.”
Again, keep in mind, these transmissions comes well after the time the early official reports were saying James Holmes was in custody. The first 911 calls came in at 12:39 am and official reports are that the first officer was on scene at the back of the theater in 90 seconds and that the shooter was arrested within about a minute and a half of the first call. At this point both Aurora PD and FD scanners are reporting victims shot outside the front of the theater and both channels are reporting that the shooting is still in progress.
July 20, 2012, 12:43 am
At 12:43 am police are advising on air that someone may have sprayed some gas in the theater. They are calling for additional officers inside of theater nine. The fact they are calling for “additional” officers suggest some are already inside theater nine at this time. Still, no audio is reporting yet that the suspect is in custody.
Still at 12:43 am, Aurora Police scanners reveal an officer notifying dispatch he now has the back (east side) of the theater covered via the following transmission, “Eleven, we’ve got the back covered and the south side covered.”
Oddly enough, the police officer does not mention seeing James Holmes, does not mention anyone being arrested, nor does he report that the shooter is in custody. There is no indication from this transmission the shooter is done shooting. The officer simply reports he is at the back of the theater and has it covered. It is almost four minutes now after the shooting began, already contradicting the official statement that the shooter was in custody within two minutes of the shooting.
There are those who will point out the police and fire sometimes scramble private audio channels and may not have been streaming live all of the events taking place behind the theater. Some suggest therefore that James Holmes could have been arrested but it simply was not broadcast over public airwaves. However, I believe the police and fire dispatch audio actually do reveal the exact moment James Holmes is believed to be captured and it is still much further ahead.
At this point a male officer is heard asking on air if they have gas masks available. Aurora fire dispatch is reporting there are at least three injuries at this point.
July 20, 2012, 12:44 am
The primary lieutenant on scene breaks in over the police scanner at 12:44 am “Lincoln twenty-five, I’m being told that he’s in theater nine. From what I’m smelling inside I can…it sounds like it’s OC, maybe two,…” Now pay careful attention. Lincoln twenty-five has reported that he is at the back side of the theater. He is also reporting that he believes the shooter may still be inside theater nine. Additionally, this officer is saying he smells tear gas “inside” which suggests that he’s either at the exit door or possibly actually inside theater nine. Again there is NO mention of a suspect in custody. Also remember that eye-witnesses reported seeing the shooter exit the theater via the door leading to the back side of the theater. How did they miss each other?
Also, I’d like clarify the officers comment about smelling “OC, maybe two”. I have found that two common forms of tear gas are CS (which is also called 2-chlorobenzalmalononitrile) and OC which stands for oleoresin capsicum, the active ingredient in pepper spray. Basically the officer is reporting he smells some sort of tear gas. This officer is a ranking Lieutenant, and he clearly believes that the shooter is still in theater nine. He does NOT therefore believe the shooter is outside the theater or that he has been detained.
Right then an urgent call out interrupts over the air from an officer who yells “…get us some damn gas makes for theater nine, we can’t get in it!”
Again, please note the primary lieutenant on scene is still apparently unaware the shooter is in custody (if the official statement from the Chief of Police was correct). He is reporting that he is being told the shooter is still in theater nine. Multiple sources are reporting the shooting is still active. It is clear from the transmission officers still believe the shooter is active inside theater nine and has not detained.
And then it happens…the shooter is discovered!