A debate over a notebook Aurora theater shooting suspect James Holmes mailed to his psychiatrist has been postponed one week.

The subject was expected to be at the center of Thursday’s scheduled hearing in Holmes’ case. Attorneys for Holmes and prosecutors were set to argue over whether the notebook is protected by doctor-patient privilege.

But in an order issued Wednesday afternoon, 18th Judicial District Chief Judge William Sylvester granted a motion to put off debate about the notebook until August 23.

Prosecutors filed the motion earlier Wednesday to delay the hearing because they had not received documents they said they need to properly prepare for the debate.

Chief among those documents, according to the motion, are records requested from the University of Colorado, which Holmes attended and which employs Dr. Lynne Fenton, Holmes’ one-time psychiatrist. The subpoena to the university requires those documents be produced by Thursday, but Sylvester has also scheduled a hearing for August 23 on whether those documents should be released.

“If we conduct a hearing tomorrow,” prosecutor Karen Pearson wrote in the motion, “we anticipate it may be necessary to recall the witnesses subpoenaed for tomorrow’s hearing for an additional court date.”

The hearing scheduled for Thursday will still take place, Sylvester wrote in his order, but it will be largely procedural in nature. Sylvester said the attorneys should be present to discuss outstanding document subpoenas and to schedule future court dates.

John Ingold: 303-954-1068, jingold@denverpost.com or twitter.com/john_ingold