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By the numbers: Grim toll of Aurora theater shooting rampage

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A courtroom sketch showing James Holmes with Arapahoe County Public Defender Tamara Brady at the Arapahoe District Courthouse in Centennial, Colo.   (JEFF KANDYBA / EPA)
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People enter the Arapahoe County Justice Center in Centennial, Colo., on Jan. 20, 2015.  (Brennan Linsley / AP)
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A mourner touches the hearse carrying the body of mass shooting victim Alexander J. Boik after his funeral at Queen Of Peace Catholic Church in Aurora, Colo.  (Mark Boster / Los Angeles Times)
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Lasamoa Cross, the girlfriend of mass shooting victim Alexander J. Boik is comforted after his funeral at Queen Of Peace Catholic Church in Aurora.  (Mark Boster / Los Angeles Times)
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Pallbearers escort the coffin containing the body of mass shooting victim Alexander J. Boik.  (Mark Boster / Los Angeles Times)
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A mourner hugs Theresa Hoover, center, mother of mass shooting victim Alexander J. Boik, before her son’s funeral.  (Mark Boster / Los Angeles Times)
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Theresa Hoover, mother of mass shooting victim Alexander J. Boik is escorted by her surviving son, Wil Boik, after the funeral.  (Mark Boster / Los Angeles Times)
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“Angels Walk With Those Who Grieve” is the latest banner to be added to the roadside memorial across the street from the Century 16 theaters in Aurora, Colo. Funerals and memorials have begun for the 12 killed in the mass shooting, and several of the 58 wounded still remain hospitalized.  (Mark Boster / Los Angeles Times)
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DENVER,COLORADO, JULY 26, 2012: Students and faculty join together at the University of Colorado Denver Auraria campus to honor the shooting victims in Aurora, Colo., with prayer, chalk drawings and a small memorial.  (Mark Boster / Los Angeles Times)
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Signs are everywhere at the roadside memorial across the street from the Century 16 theaters.   (Mark Boster / Los Angeles Times)
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Dawn breaks and a new day begins with the crosses, messages and flowers helping the community to heal at the roadside memorial across the street from the Century 16 theaters in Aurora. Funerals and memorials have begun for the 12 killed in the mass shooting and several of the 58 wounded still remain hospitalized.  (Mark Boster / Los Angeles Times)
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The grieving and the healing continues at the roadside memorial across the street from the Century 16 theaters in Aurora.  (Mark Boster / Los Angeles Times)
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Mourners begin to arrive at daybreak to pay their respects at the roadside memorial across the street from the Century 16 theaters in Aurora.  (Mark Boster / Los Angeles Times)
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Family and friends leave Pathways Church in Denver after honoring the life of shooting victim Gordon Ware Cowden during a private memorial.  (Mark Boster / Los Angeles Times)
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Family and friends leave Pathways Church in Denver after honoring the life of shooting victim Gordon Ware Cowden, who was one of 12 killed during the shooting rampage at the Century 16 theater in Auroroa.  (Mark Boster / Los Angeles Times)
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Law enforcement officials allow residents to retrieve their belongings from the apartment building in Aurora, where mass shooting suspect James Holmes lived.  (Mark Boster / Los Angeles Times)
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Mourners still flock to the roadside memorial across the street from the Century 16 theaters in Aurora, Colo., where 12 people were shot to death and 58 wounded by a lone gunman.  (Mark Boster / Los Angeles Times)
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The grief and the healing continue in Aurora, Colo., as the roadside memorial to the 12 dead and 58 wounded grows larger by the hour.  (Mark Boster / Los Angeles Times)
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Police tape flutters in the breeze in Aurora, Colo., where prosecution teams continued to investigate the apartment complex of mass shooting suspect James Holmes. Investigators came and went throughout the day, taking pictures, collecting evidence and walking around the complex.  (Mark Boster/Los Angeles Times)
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An investigator is visible through the window of an apartment at the complex in Aurora.   (Mark Boster/Los Angeles Times)
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A roadside memorial across the street from the Century 16 theaters in Aurora, Colo., continues to grow.  (Mark Boster/Los Angeles Times)
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Aurora, Colo., resident Fred John plays taps on a hill above the roadside memorial across the street from the Century 16 theater where the shootings occurred.   (Mark Boster / Los Angeles Times)
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The roadside memorial across the street from the Century 16 theater in Aurora includes message boards for visitors to leave their thoughts and prayers.  (Mark Boster / Los Angeles Times)
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Trevor Diercks, his wife, Rebecca, and two sons Kameron, in yellow, and Haydn, center, mourn their friend Jessie Childress at the roadside memorial across the street from the Century 16 theater in Aurora.  (Mark Boster / Los Angeles Times)
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Pastor PM Wynn, left, Pastor Titia Stillwell and Lori Mead sing “Amazing Grace” during a public prayer vigil in front of the Aurora Municipal Center in Aurora, Colo., to honor the victims of Friday’s movie theater shootings.  (Mark Boster / Los Angeles Times)
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Friends and relatives of shooting victim Jon Blunk carry handmade signs at a public prayer vigil in Aurora, Colo.  (Mark Boster / Los Angeles Times)
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At a prayer vigil, Monica Matryba and Keith Hoover hold a picture of their friend Jon Blunk, who was killed in Friday’s movie theater shootings.  (Mark Boster / Los Angeles Times)
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A public prayer service is held in Aurora, Colo., to honor victims of Friday’s movie theater shootings.  (Mark Boster / Los Angeles Times)
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By midafternoon Sunday, messages began to appear on the wooden crosses erected on a vacant lot across the street from the Century 16 theaters where the deadly shooting rampage took place.   (Mark Boster / Los Angeles Times)
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With the mall reopened, people walk up to the police tape still encircling the parking lot at the Century 16 theaters in Aurora, Colo., where 12 people were killed and 58 injured early Friday morning in a shooting rampage.   (Mark Boster / Los Angeles Times)
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Father Mauricio Bermudez hugs his parishioners after Sunday services at Queen of Peace Catholic Church in Aurora, Colo.  (Mark Boster / Los Angeles Times)
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Parishioners at the Queen of Peace Catholic Church come together for morning services two days after 12 people were killed in a mass shooting.  (Mark Boster / Los Angeles Times)
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The mother of shooting victim AJ Boik is helped off the field after a memorial for her son at Gateway High School in Aurora, his alma mater.  (Mark Boster / Los Angeles Times)
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A postcard was handed out at the memorial for shooting victim AJ Boik.  (Mark Boster / Los Angeles Times)
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Sadie Robinson, left, and Cecilia Alexander hold candles and lean on each other for support during the memorial for shooting victim AJ Boik.  (Mark Boster / Los Angeles Times)
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Mourners hug at the gathering to honor shooting victim AJ Boik.  (Mark Boster / Los Angeles Times)
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Alfred Alexander and his daughter Irma Alexander, 14, sit with candles during the memorial for AJ Boik.  (Mark Boster / Los Angeles Times)
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People gather at a roadside memorial across the street from the movie theater where 12 people were killed.  (Mark Boster / Los Angeles Times)
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People light candles at the roadside memorial.  (Mark Boster / Los Angeles Times)
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Police and firefighters in Aurora, Colo., surround the booby-trapped apartment of James Holmes, the suspect in the movie theater shootings that killed 12.   (Kevork Djansezian / Getty Images)
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An aerial view of the booby-trapped apartment of James Holmes, arrested in the shootings that killed 12 in Aurora, Colo. Authorities dismantled a series of explosives.   (Kevork Djansezian / Getty Images)
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Police and firefighters in Aurora, Colo., surround the booby-trapped apartment of shooting suspect James Holmes.  (Kevork Djansezian / Getty Images)
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A bomb disposal squad inserts an explosive device into the apartment of mass shooting suspect James Holmes in Aurora, Colo., to destroy some of the booby traps and trip wires left behind.   (Mark Boster / Los Angeles Times)
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FBI personnel look over some of the things taken from the apartment of mass shooting suspect James Holmes.  (Mark Boster / Los Angeles Times)
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Law enforcement officials stand ready to enter the apartment formerly occupied by shooting suspect James Holmes in Aurora.  (Mark Boster / Los Angeles Times)
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Aurora Police Chief Daniel Oates listens during a morning briefing. Officials are worried that Holmes set devices and explosives in his apartment that will trigger if a first responder enters the door.  (Mark Boster / Los Angeles Times)
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Law enforcement officials place a piece of equipment on the rooftop adjacent to the apartment formerly occupied by shooting suspect James Holmes in Aurora.  (Mark Boster / Los Angeles Times)
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Law enforcement officials broke the windows to gain access to the apartment formerly occupied by shooting suspect James Holmes in Aurora.  (Mark Boster / Los Angeles Times)
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Pastor Mary Lu Saddoris, left, prays with Isaac Pacheo, center, and Courtney McGregor, right, near a photo of their friend Alex Sullivan on Saturday at a memorial near the movie theater in Aurora, Colo.  (Ted S. Warren / Associated Press)
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From left, Tylecia Amos, 14, Shatyra Amos, 15, Michael Walker, 17, and Mykia Walker, 16, carry flowers to lay at a makeshift memorial across the street from the Century Theater parking lot.  (Barry Gutierrez / Associated Press)
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Three helicopters make a flyover of the Century Theater on Saturday morning in Aurora, Colo.  (Barry Gutierrez / Associated Press)
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Lindsey Revie cries on the shoulder of a fellow mourner during a public service across the street from the movie theater in Aurora, Colo.  (Mark Boster / Los Angeles Times)
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A public showing of patriotism and faith as mourners gather during a public service across the street from the movie theater in Aurora, Colo.  (Mark Boster / Los Angeles Times)
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Denver resident Shanna Hunt holds a sign during a public service across the street from the movie theater in Aurora, Colo.  (Mark Boster / Los Angeles Times)
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A prayer service is held across the street from the movie theater were the gunman opened fire during a midnight screening of “The Dark Knight Rises,” killing 12 and injuring 59.  (Mark Boster / Los Angeles Times)
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Pastor Phil Martinez leads a prayer during a public service across the street from the movie theater in Aurora, Colo., where 12 people were killed and another 59 wounded by lone gunman during the midnight showing of the new Batman movie.  (Mark Boster / Los Angeles Times)
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Police break a window of the Aurora, Colo., apartment of James Holmes, arrested in the shooting deaths of 12 people during an early Friday screening of “The Dark Knight Rises.”  (Thomas Cooper / Getty Images)
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Investigators sift through evidence near the apartment of James Holmes, arrested in the Aurora, Colo., movie theater shooting early Friday.   (Thomas Cooper / Getty Images)
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A woman overcome with emotion is surrounded by counselors, police officers and clergy outside Gateway High School in Aurora, Colo.   (Barry Gutierrez / Associated Press)
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Investigators look over evidence on the ground outside the back door of the Century 16 movie theater in Aurora, Colo.  (David Zalubowski / Associated Press)
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A gas mask and evidence markers on the ground outside the back door of the Century 16 movie theater in Aurora, Colo.   (David Zalubowski / Associated Press)
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The mother of James Holmes lives in the San Diego suburb of Rancho Penasquitos. James Holmes was arrested after a mass shooting occurred in a Colorado movie theater.   (Don Bartletti / Los Angeles Times)
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Parent Tom Sullivan holds a photograph of his son Alex outside Gateway High School while pleading with the media for help finding him. Alex Sullivan was celebrating his 27th birthday by attending a midnight premiere of the Batman movie “The Dark Knight Rises” early Friday. A gunman wearing a gas mask set off an unknown gas and fired into the crowded theater, killing 12 people and injuring at least 50 others, authorities said.  (Barry Gutierrez / Associated Press)
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Investigators search the car of the suspected gunman, identified as James Holmes, after the shooting rampage at the Century 16 movie complex.   (Bob Pearson / EPA)
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Investigators search a trash bin outside the apartment of shooting suspect James Holmes.   (Bob Pearson / EPA)
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A distraught woman is counseled in front of Gateway High School in Aurora, Colo.   ( Credit: Jonathan Castner / AFP/GettyImages)
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The Century 16 theater in Aurora, Colo.  (David Zalubowski / Associated Press)
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Judy Goos hugs her daughter’s friend, Isaiah Bow, 20, as Emma Goos, 19, and Terrell Wallin, 20, look on after they all made it out alive from the Century 16. They were gathered outside Gateway High School, where witnesses were brought for questioning.  (Barry Gutierrez / Associated Press)
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Crime scene tape blocks off the Century 16 movie theater in Aurora, Colo., where a gunmen attacked patrons during an early morning screening of the new Batman movie, “The Dark Knight Rises.”  (Thomas Cooper / Getty Images)
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Jacob Stevens, 18, hugs his mother, Tammi Stevens, after being interviewed by police outside Gateway High School, where witness were taken for questioning.  (Barry Gutierrez / Associated Press)
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A SWAT officer stands watch with an automatic rifle near the apartment house where the suspect in the shooting lived.  (Ed Andrieski / Associated Press)
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Police on a fire truck ladder break into the suspect’s apartment, which they then used a video camera to look inside.  (Ed Andrieski / Associated Press)
By Maria L. La GangaStaff Writer 
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After nearly three years of legal maneuvering, the trial of James E. Holmes is scheduled to begin Monday.

Prosecutors are seeking the death penalty for the July 20, 2012, rampage at a movie theater in the Denver suburb of Aurora.

Grim, somber and painful, the proceedings are expected to last all summer, rack up millions of dollars in court costs and remind Coloradans of a terrible chapter in state history.

82

Casualties in the rampage. Holmes is charged with killing 12 moviegoers and injuring 70 others, making the crime the largest mass shooting on American soil.

6

Age of the youngest person to die. Veronica Moser-Sullivan had just completed kindergarten.

51

Age of Gordon W. Cowden, the oldest person to die in the attack.

166

Criminal counts Holmes faces. This includes 24 counts of first-degree murder, two for each of the dozen victims.

9,000

Summonses sent out to prospective jurors. This is believed to be a record number of jury requests for an American trial.

500,000

Eligible jurors in the region. The net was cast so wide that nearly 1 in 50 residents could have received notices.

18

Pages of questions asked of prospective jurors. Queries included whether the prospects watch court or police reality shows and what kind of bumper stickers they have on their cars.

1,102

Days between the attack and the opening statements in the trial.

3

People currently on Colorado's death row. The penalty is rarely used in the Centennial State. If Holmes is found guilty, he could be put to death.

MORE:

Trial of Colorado theater gunman James Holmes: Opening statements Monday

Follow @marialaganga for national news  

World & Nation
Maria L. La Ganga

Maria L. La Ganga is the deputy managing editor for California and Metro, overseeing the Los Angeles Times’ largest editorial department. She joined The Times in 1981 as an academic intern, splitting her time between the former Metro section and National Dragster, the official publication of the National Hot Rod Assn. She has served as Seattle bureau chief, San Francisco bureau chief, edited in the Business section and pitched in on six presidential elections, five for The Times and one for the Guardian. La Ganga left The Times in 2015 and returned in 2018 after a brief hiatus during which she wrote for the Guardian and the Idaho Statesman. She was named city editor in 2022 and promoted to her current role in 2024. La Ganga graduated from Granada Hills High School in the San Fernando Valley and Cal State Northridge, where she studied English literature and journalism.

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