SAN DIEGO (CBS 8) – The suspect in the movie theater shooting massacre in Aurora, Colorado was remembered as a quiet loner by peers who worked with him at an internship in San Diego.
In high school, 24-year-old James Holmes won a competitive position at a rigorous science boot camp and an internship in neurobiology at the prestigious Salk Institute.
A colleague who also participated in that program says she remembers Holmes as being quiet and smart, but anti-social and isolated.
"He was a very quiet person. He didn't talk to us. All of us were very excited to be there," says a former Salk internship peer who asked not to be identified, " but he never wanted to associate with us."
At the University of California, Riverside, where Holmes later graduated with honors in neuroscience in 2010, he's remembered as brilliant.
University Chancellor Tim White says, "He was an honor student, so academically he was at the top of the top. He really distinguished himself from an academic point of view during his four years with us, graduating with highest honors."
Neighbors says Holmes seemed frustrated after earning his undergraduate degree in neuroscience when the only job he could get was at McDonalds.
He reportedly applied and was admitted to graduate school at the University of Colorado. He dropped out in June.
