CENTENNIAL, Colo.—Prosecutors in the Colorado theater shooting case are defending themselves against allegations that they showed “reckless disregard for the truth.”

Defense attorneys on Aug. 27 asked Arapahoe County District Court Judge William Sylvester to punish prosecutors. The request was filed three days after a hearing in which Chief Deputy District Attorney Karen Pearson raised the possibility that suspect James Holmes may been have motivated by anger over a failing academic career. The hearing involved access to his school records.

A court document released Friday shows prosecutors responded to the request for sanctions. The exact nature of their response and the defense attorneys’ allegations weren’t released because those documents are sealed, like most documents in the case.

Holmes is charged with killing 12 people and wounding 58 others in the July 20 shooting.