AURORA, Colo. — James E. Holmes, the Colorado man accused of gunning down 12 people at an Aurora movie theater last week, was being treated by a psychiatrist whose research interests include psychotherapy and the neurobiology of schizophrenia, according to court papers filed by Mr. Holmes’s lawyers on Thursday, the first documented glimpse into his mental health condition.

Mr. Holmes, who was in the process of withdrawing from a graduate program at the University of Colorado Denver’s Anschutz Medical Campus, was being treated by Dr. Lynne Fenton, medical director of the school’s student mental health services, the documents said.

According to the court papers, Mr. Holmes had sent a package to Dr. Fenton, which was ultimately seized by the police after a search warrant was executed on Monday.

The package contained what the court filings called “communications” from Mr. Holmes to Dr. Fenton, but no specifics were given. Mr. Holmes’s lawyers said information about the package was being leaked to the news media despite being protected by laws governing confidentiality between patients and doctors and a gag order in the case issued by Judge William Sylvester.