Feature: Colorado's mass murderer had first academic failure just before shooting

Some of America's most brilliant neuroscience minds testified on Wednesday that the confessed killer James Holmes was "perfect" as a student, but also cocky, lazy and socially inept, qualities that doomed him in their elite program.

Holmes dropped out unexpectedly from the University of Colorado (CU)'s Neuroscience Ph.D. program in June 2012, his first-ever academic failure.

One month later, Holmes stepped through the exit door of a nearby movie theater and fired into the unsuspecting audience, killing 12 and injuring 70 in one of the worst mass murders in U.S. history.

Wednesday's two academic witnesses highlighted Holmes' genius and potential -- a stark contrast to those who told of the horror he had orchestrated at the midnight showing of a new Batman movie in Aurora, a densely-populated suburb of Denver.

Holmes, charged with 166 counts of murder or attempted murder, faces the death penalty if found sane at the time of the killing. He has plead "not guilty by reason of insanity" as a way of avoiding the death penalty.

The trial is the most followed U.S. murder trial in 20 years.

All of CU's renowned neuroscience professors have complimented Holmes thus far -- openly stating his brilliance, but also pointing to his social awkwardness and sudden lackluster performance as factors that made them tell the 24-year-old Ph.D. candidate to "find another program."

The prosecution, led by four-county, elected top-shelf District Attorney George Brauchler, successfully got both professors to testify they saw no change in Holmes' behavior in the year they were together, and that he was alert and responsive during that time.

Meanwhile, the defense was trying to show the rapid decline in Holmes' condition at a time his lifelong struggle with schizophrenia was peaking, thus supporting their claim he was "insane" at the time of the massacre.

Day seven of the so-called "Batman shooter trial" saw testimony from CU professors Achim Klug, an "auditory-system" Munich Ph.D., and Mark Dell'Acqua, a Harvard neuro-pharmacologist. Both professors worked with Holmes during his Ph.D. studies at Anschutz in Denver.

Klug called Holmes socially immature, as prosecutors showed his final PowerPoint presentation that ended with cartoons and awkward jokes that nobody found humorous.

However, another presentation showing how mutated protein effects synapse receptors in the brain, cutting-edge neuroscience research, was successfully enacted by Holmes.

Dell'Acqua said Holmes did poorly because he did not seem as dedicated or motivated as other students.

Klug gave Holmes perfect grades on 16 of 18 categories in a presentation, but responded to the defendant's email request to join his research lab by saying he "wanted to talk about concerns" before letting him into the lab.

Holmes replied haughtily, "no thanks, I'll join another program."

Wednesday's testimony also included that of young Caitlin Peddicord, who saw her friend Alex Teves, 24, throw his body on top of his girlfriend Amanda Lindren when gunfire erupted in the theater.

Teves' father Tom is still grieving "my first born... I love him with all my heart" and is expected to testify in the trial that will take 4-6 months, will see hundreds of witnesses, and is expected to heat up this summer.

Peddicord told the court Wednesday how she saw Teves' body hit by Holmes' bullet and collapse to the ground. "Alex...Alex!" screamed Lindren, as she watched her boyfriend Alex buckle to the ground and die, Peddicord recalled.

Several friends and family of the victims and members of the media teared up.

Three bomb squad technicians were shown in a video Wednesday using a sophisticated, five-camera robot to break into and inspect Holmes' car for explosives.

Inside Holmes's white Hyundai sedan, parked just outside the rear door of the theater, they found several handgun magazines, a bandage for stopping a gunshot wound, and a second handgun.

Arapahoe County bomb squad experts Jonathan Vaala, Craig Clark and Troy Walker also told about having to turn over 10 deceased adults left in the theater, to see if any explosive devices were lodged under their bodies.

Also, as part of court proceedings, two jurors, who had "recognized" members of the jury outside the courtroom, were questioned in detail by highly regarded Arapahoe County District Court Judge Carlos Samour, Jr.

Samour has insisted throughout the trial that the jury be represented by people with no "prejudice" or bias in any way toward the victims or the defendant.

Each and every day, Samour has reminded jurors about their responsibility to tell the truth and this "impartial" goal.

Both jurors, after extensive questioning by Samour, were left on the jury, that consists of 19 women and 5 men. Endi