(Reuters) - Prosecutors in the murder case against Colorado cinema gunman James Holmes are asking that crime scene and autopsy photographs and videos of victims be restricted at the upcoming trial, court records showed on Friday.
In a filing, the prosecutors request that Arapahoe County District Court Judge Carlos Samour rules the graphic images can only be shown to the jury, lawyers and himself, and not to the courtroom gallery or be broadcast by news media.
"Although the photos ... are unfortunately necessary evidence for the trial, allowing the media and the public (the) right to view all of them is completely unnecessary," the motion said.
Defense lawyers do not object to the request, prosecutors said.
Holmes, 27, has pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity to fatally shooting 12 moviegoers and wounding dozens more inside a suburban Denver cinema in July 2012 during a midnight screening of the Batman movie "The Dark Knight Rises."
Prosecutors have said they will seek the death penalty for the onetime neuroscience graduate student if he is convicted.
Public defenders have conceded the California native was the lone shooter, but they say he was undergoing a psychotic episode when he planned and carried out the rampage.
Over the objections of lawyers from both sides, Samour ruled last year that a fixed television camera will be allowed in the courtroom to broadcast the proceedings.
Jury selection is underway, and Samour said he wants lawyers to present their opening statements next month.
Families of the slain victims oppose showing the gruesome pictures in open court, prosecutors said. Relatives or representatives of three of those killed submitted letters to the judge, imploring him to restrict the images.
Sandy and Lonnie Phillips, parents of 24-year-old Jessica Ghawi, wrote that photos of their slain daughter should not be disseminated and should be sealed after the trial.
"We are offended at the very thought of pictures of our daughter's bullet riddled body ... might be seen by the public at any point," their letter said. "This is not a legacy we or our family deserve."
A lawyer who represents news media organizations had no immediate comment on the prosecution's request.
(Reporting by Keith Coffman; Editing by Daniel Wallis and Eric Beech)
