Story highlights
- University releases nearly 4,000 e-mails related to James Holmes
- CNN affiliate reports doctor decided in June against ordering a three-day mental evaluation
- Theater where shootings occurred will reopen in mid-January
Thousands of e-mails released Wednesday by the university once attended by the Colorado movie theater shooting suspect reveal James Holmes may have once had a romantic relationship with a fellow graduate student and possibly had two badges for the campus at the time of the attack.
The University of Colorado at Denver, in response to media requests for Holmes' records, released more than 3,800 e-mails that were sent or received by Holmes or mentioned his name in the text.
Holmes is accused of going on a shooting spree during a midnight screening of the Batman film "The Dark Knight Rises" July 20 at an Aurora cinema, killing 12 people and injuring 58 others.
One e-mail sent about 11 hours after the shooting said Holmes may have been involved for a short time with a student in a professor's program.
"She, fortunately, it turns out is in India right now," an e-mail from the professor says. "She knows, and is pretty freaked out."
Photos: Colorado movie theater massacre
Photos: Colorado movie theater massacre
The public gets its first glimpse of James Holmes, then 24, the suspect in the Colorado theater shooting during his initial court appearance July 23, 2012. With his hair dyed reddish-orange, Holmes, here with public defender Tamara Brady, showed little emotion. He is accused of opening fire in a movie theater July 20, 2012, in Aurora, Colorado, killing 12 people and wounding 70. Holmes faces 166 counts, almost all alleging murder or attempted murder. He has pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity. More photos: Mourning the victims of the Colorado theater massacre
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Police release the official photo from Holmes' booking after the shooting.
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Holmes often had a blank stare during his July 23, 2012, court appearance, seeming to be in a daze.
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Victims and their relatives and journalists watch the proceedings in 2012.
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Flags fly at half-staff on July 23, 2012, at the Arapahoe County Courthouse in Centennial, Colorado, where the movie theater shooting suspect had his first court appearance. The murder counts against Holmes carry a possible death penalty.
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Arapahoe County District Attorney Carol Chambers talks to reporters July 23, 2012, before heading into the courthouse. The murder counts against Holmes carry a possible death penalty.
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Family members of the victims arrive at the courthouse July 23, 2012, for the suspect's first court appearance.
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Photos: Colorado movie theater massacre
The Century Aurora 16 multiplex in Aurora becomes a place of horror after a gunman opened fire July 20, 2012, in a crowded theater.
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Holmes is accused of opening fire during a midnight screening of the Batman movie "The Dark Knight Rises." Holmes purchased four weapons and more than 6,000 rounds of ammunition, police say.
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Police investigate outside the Century 16 multiplex July 21, 2012, a day after the mass shooting.
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Agents search the suspect's car outside the theater.
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Aurora police escort a sand-filled dump truck containing improvised explosive devices removed from Holmes' booby-trapped apartment on July 21, 2012. Authorities have said they believe the suspect rigged his place before leaving for the movie theater.
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Police break a window at the suspect's apartment July 20, 2012, in Aurora.
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Law enforcement officers speak with Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper, center, outside the suspect's apartment July 21, 2012.
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Law enforcement officers prepare to disarm the booby-trapped apartment July 21, 2012.
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Officials tow cars outside Holmes' apartment July 21, 2012. Police disassembled devices and trip wires set up in the apartment.
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Officers prepare to place an explosive device inside the apartment.
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Debris flies out a window, right, after law enforcement officers detonate an explosive device inside the apartment July 21, 2012.
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People mourn the victims during a vigil behind the theater where a gunman opened fire on moviegoers in Aurora.
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A woman grieves during a vigil for victims behind the theater.
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A distraught woman receives counseling from the Rev. Quincy Shannon, left, in front of Gateway High School in Aurora, where the families of the missing met after the shooting.
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Lin Gan of Aurora holds back tears as she speaks to reporters about her experience in the Century 16 theater.
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People embrace before a vigil for victims behind the theater where a gunman opened fire on moviegoers.
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Investigators work on evidence near the apartment of James Holmes on July 20, 2012.
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Members of the Aurora Police Department SWAT unit walk near the Holmes' apartment.
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Television news crews gather in front of the home of Robert and Arlene Holmes, parents of suspect James Holmes, in San Diego on July 21, 2012.
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A popcorn box lies on the ground outside the Century 16 movie theater.
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Adariah Legarreta, 4, is comforted by her grandmother Rita Abeyta near the Century 16 Theater in Aurora.
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Jessica Ghawi, an aspiring sportscaster, was one of the victims.
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A woman waits for news outside Gateway High School, a few blocks from the scene of the shooting at the Century Aurora 16.
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Aurora police chief Daniel J. Oates speaks at a press conference near the Century 16 Theater on July 20, 2012.
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Agents search the trash container outside the suspect's apartment in Aurora.
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A Federal ATF officer carries protective gear onsite at the home of the shooting suspect.
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President Obama speaks on the shootings at a July 20, 2012, event in Fort Myers, Florida.
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Moviegoers are interviewed at the Century Aurora 16.
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Officers gather at the theater July 20, 2012.
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Investigators were a common sight at the theater on July 20, 2012.
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Authorities gather at the shooting suspect's apartment building in Aurora. Police broke a second-floor window to look for explosives the suspect claimed were in the apartment.
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Screaming, panicked moviegoers scrambled to escape from the black-clad gunman, who wore a gas mask and randomly shot as he walked up the theater's steps, witnesses said.
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Onlookers gather outside the Century Aurora 16 theater.
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A woman sits on top of her car near the crime scene.
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Police block access to the Town Center mall after the shooting.
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Cell phone video taken by someone at the theater showed scores of people screaming and fleeing the building. Some, like this man, had blood on their clothes.
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Witnesses told KUSA the gunman kicked in an emergency exit door and threw a smoke bomb into the darkened theater before opening fire.
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What is believed to be the suspect's car is examined after the shooting.
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Also Wednesday, CNN affiliate KMGH reported sources said Holmes began to fantasize about killing "a lot of people" in early June, nearly six weeks before the shootings.
The sources, who were not identified by the station but who were described as being familiar with the investigation, told KMGH that a doctor treating Holmes was asked in June if she wanted to order him held for 72 hours to be evaluated by mental health professionals. But the station's sources said the doctor decided against it because Holmes was in the process of withdrawing from the school.
Warning signs in Aurora shooting case 03:09
Were red flags on Holmes ignored? 03:20
But an e-mail sent in July on the day of the shootings within the school's information technology department acknowledged that Holmes still had an active computer account at the time, and two badges for the campus.
One official in the IT department answered the original message by saying that the department should only act on the legal department's advice and not deactivate Holmes' computer access.
Hundreds of the e-mails released were redacted by the school, citing privacy laws.
Many of the ones that weren't were sent between university officials in the aftermath of the killings, including one sent about seven hours later with the subject line "Horrible News."
The professor who wrote the e-mail wonders if the suspect is the James Holmes she knows and asks others if they think it would be wise to meet with the students who may have had class with him.
Other e-mails among those released were purportedly from Holmes, usually signed with "Cheers, James Holmes."
The movie theater complex where the shootings occurred will reopen to the public on January 18, the Aurora mayor's office said Wednesday.
Victims and their families will be invited to visit the theater on January 15 and 16, the mayor's office said. The next night the theater will host an event for other invited guests then will show free movies for the first three days it is open to everyone.
Holmes, who faces 152 charges, including murder and weapons offenses, is next due in court December 10.
