James Holmes missed a court hearing in his murder case on Wednesday and it was later revealed that he was sent to the hospital after slamming his head into a jail cell wall. Attorneys for Holmes asked the judge in Holmes's case for a postponement of a pre-trial hearing that was scheduled for Wednesday, but would not explain in court why Holmes was not present, citing concerns about his privacy. The Denver Post reported, however, that the day before, Holmes injured himself by banging his head against the wall of his cell at the Arapahoe County jail. He was taken to the hospital and was later released to return to jail. It's the first time that he has missed a hearing since being arrested.

Officials would not say whether he intentionally tried to hurt himself, but Holmes continues to receive psychiatric treatment. Wedneday's hearing was postponed until December. Holmes faces 166 counts of murder and attempted murder for the shooting that took place at a midnight showing of The Dark Knight Rises in July. He has not yet entered a plea, but there are suggestions that his defense may argue that he is not guilty because he is mentally ill.

UPDATE: CBS Denver says that jailhouse sources claim Holmes has made several "half hearted" attempts at suicide, and that running headfirst into the wall was one of them.

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Dashiell Bennett