Now, Richards is publicly calling for Holmes to get the death penalty -- and not by lethal injection.
TMZ quotes Richards as saying, "I think death by firing squad would be totally justified.... Just injecting him is painless.
"I had enough needles in me that night to know that a needle isn't that bad. I want him to see what it feels like.... I wish someone would shoot him and let him bleed out," she adds. "He shot me with stuff they use to shoot birds and deer. I want him to feel what it's like to feel that helpless."
Richards's Facebook page, on which she dubs herself Carli DirtyRotten, features this Batman-symbol as a profile pic....
...and a photo of a wound near her hip: Accompanying this image is a note from Sunday that reads, "One of the scabs fell off but there is still a giant hole. :( #aurora UGH. I JUST WANT TO GET BETTER!!!!!"Richards's statements aren't simply personal expressions: They could have significance in court. Following Holmes's first hearing on July 23, 18th Judicial District DA Carol Chambers, the head prosecutor where the crime took place, said her office will be consulting with victims in regard to whether they view seeking the death penalty as appropriate. And while Chambers has only a few months left in office, she's likely to establish the direction of the case before she hands the DA gig to her successor.
As our Alan Prendergast has documented, Chambers is a vocal death penalty advocate -- meaning she probably won't need much convincing. Nonetheless, bold, unsolicited statements like the one from Richards can certainly be used as rationale in demanding the ultimate penalty for a man who's caused so many pain to so many.
More from our Aurora Theater Shooting archive: "Photos: Aurora theater shooting list of people James Holmes allegedly tried to kill."
