Judge dismisses fourth juror in Colorado theater shooting case

By Keith Coffman

CENTENNIAL, Colo. (Reuters) - The judge in the capital murder trial of Colorado movie-theater gunman James Holmes dismissed a fourth juror on Monday, after the woman acknowledged that her brother-in-law was recently the victim of a shooting in a robbery.

Holmes has pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity to multiple counts of first-degree murder, attempted murder and explosives charges stemming from 2012, when he opened fire in a suburban theater in Denver, killing 12 moviegoers and wounding dozens of others.

Defense lawyers say Holmes, 27, from California, suffers from schizophrenia.

The juror who was most recently dismissed had at first told Arapahoe County District Judge Carlos Samour that she wanted to visit a relative who was in hospital. Later, she said her brother-in-law had been hospitalized from wounds suffered in a shooting during a holdup.

Holmes' attorneys then moved to have the juror excused, suggesting the woman had initially been untruthful and that the fact that her relative had been the victim of a crime could prejudice her against the defendant. Prosecutors did not object.

Her removal comes on the heels of Samour's dismissal last week of three other jurors on the grounds they were tainted by hearing about a prosecutor's message on Twitter.

District Attorney George Brauchler had sent a tweet that referred to a videotaped interview that a psychiatrist conducted with Holmes.

The judge has repeatedly told jurors not to read media reports or material on social media about the trial, and not to discuss the case amongst themselves or with others.

(Reporting by Keith Coffman; Editing by Steve Gorman and Bernadette Baum)