Editing James Holmes (section)

===The shooting===
On July 19, just hours before the shooting started, Holmes mailed a notebook to his psychiatrist. The notebook detailed his thoughts and plans during the weeks preceding the shooting. The notebook was found in an undelivered package in the Anschutz Medical Campus mail-room. Immediately prior to the shooting, Holmes reportedly called a crisis hotline for mental health with the hopes that someone would talk him out of committing the massacre at the last minute. However, the call was disconnected after nine seconds.

He first threw tear gas into the crowd of moviegoers and continued to open fire upon them. He was carrying three types of firearms with him: a Remington Model 870 shotgun, a Smith & Wesson semi-automatic rifle, and a .40 Glock 22 handgun. According to witnesses, he appeared to be wearing a costume, like other audience members who had dressed up for the screening. Some believed he was playing a prank, while others thought he was part of a special effects installation setup for the film's premiere or a publicity stunt by the studio or theater management.

In total, Holmes fired 76 shots: six from the shotgun, 65 from the semi-automatic rifle, and five from the .40-caliber handgun.