Psychologists suggest accused killer James Holmes was seeking fame

LAKELAND, Fla. - To have the capability to walk inside a packed theater and shoot freely into the crowd requires a mind most experts would call 'out of control.'

“It would be self-serving, self absorbed, “ said Dr. Jeffrey Merin, a bay area psychologist.

He says James Holmes, the man accused of killing at least 12 people in a packed theater in Aurora, Col., likely picked one of the most highly-anticipated movies of the year because he was looking for the fame.

Perhaps, to share a message.

“They have ideas that they believe are superior to anybody else. They have an agenda,” he said.  ”(Holmes) created his own story.  He has become greater than the movie itself.”

Delusional minds may think committing such a horrifying act somehow solves their internal problems.

Shooters in past massacres, like at Virginia Tech, Columbine, and in Tucson, all shared a common thread:  A plan.

“That plan takes place over a long period of time.  People don’t just snap,” said Wayne Porter, former FDLE profiler who now does similar forensic work on his own in Lakeland.

He says he’s not surprised the suspect is a well-educated man, because most of these type of offenders are.

“A lot of this has to do with fantasy.  Fantasy versus reality.  Acting out on that fantasy that he has planned over and over and over again in his mind,” he said.