On January 8, 2011, United States representative Gabby Giffords and 18 others were shot during a constituent meeting held in a supermarket parking lot in Casas Adobes, Arizona, in the Tucson metropolitan area. Six people were killed, including federal District Court chief judge John Roll; Gabe Zimmerman, one of Giffords's staffers; and a nine-year-old girl, Christina Taylor Green. Giffords was holding a meeting called "Congress on Your Corner" in the parking lot of a Safeway store when Jared Lee Loughner drew a pistol and shot her in the head at point-blank range before proceeding to fire on others. In addition to Giffords and the six deceased, twelve others were shot. News reports identified the target of the attack to be Giffords, a Democrat representing Arizona's 8th congressional district. Giffords's medical condition was initially described as "critical".
Loughner, a 22-year-old Tucson man who was fixated on Giffords, was arrested at the scene. Federal prosecutors filed five charges against him, including the attempted assassination of a member of Congress and the assassination of a federal judge. Loughner previously had been arrested on a minor drug charge and had been suspended by his college for disruptive behavior. Court filings included handwritten notes by Loughner indicating he planned to assassinate Giffords. Loughner did not cooperate with authorities, invoking his right to remain silent. He was held without bail and indicted on 49 counts. In January 2012, Loughner was found by a federal judge to be incompetent to stand trial based on two medical evaluations, which diagnosed him with paranoid schizophrenia. On August 7, Loughner had another hearing in which he was judged competent. He pleaded guilty to 19 counts, and in November 2012 was sentenced to life in prison.
Following the shooting, American and international politicians expressed grief and condemnations. Gun control advocates pushed for increased restrictions on the sale of firearms and ammunition, specifically high-capacity magazines. Some commentators criticized the use of harsh political rhetoric in the U.S., with a number blaming the political right wing for the shooting. In particular, Sarah Palin was criticized for a poster by her political action committee that featured stylized crosshairs on an electoral map that included Giffords. Palin rejected claims that she bore any responsibility for the shooting. President Barack Obama led a nationally televised memorial service on January 12, and other memorials took place.
Shooting
The shooting took place on January 8, 2011, at 10:10 A.M. MST (17:10 UTC). A United States Representative from Arizona, Gabrielle Giffords, was holding a constituent meeting called "Congress on Your Corner" at the Safeway supermarket in La Toscana Village mall, which is in Casas Adobes, a census-designated place north of Tucson. Giffords had set up a table outside the store and about 20 to 30 people were gathered around her when a 22-year-old man named Jared Lee Loughner suddenly drew a pistol and shot Giffords in the head. The shooting was caught on video by a store security camera, but was not released to the public.
Loughner proceeded to fire apparently randomly at other members of the crowd. He was armed with a Glock 19 semi-automatic pistol with four magazines, two of which were capable of holding 33 rounds. A nearby store employee said he heard "15 to 20 gunshots". Loughner stopped to reload, but dropped the loaded magazine from his pocket to the sidewalk, from where bystander Patricia Maisch grabbed it. Another bystander, Roger Salzgeber, clubbed the back of the assailant's head with a folding chair, injuring his elbow in the process. Loughner was tackled to the ground by Bill Badger, a 74-year-old retired United States Army Colonel who had also been shot himself. Loughner was further subdued by Maisch, Salzgeber and bystander Joseph Zamudio. Zamudio, a concealed weapon (CCW) permit holder, had a weapon on his person, but arrived after the shooting had stopped and did not draw his firearm. Thirty-one shell casings were found at the scene by investigators.
The first call from the scene to emergency services was received at 10:11 A.M. While waiting for help to arrive, Giffords's intern Daniel Hernández Jr. applied pressure to the gunshot wound on her forehead, and made sure she did not choke on her blood. Hernández and local paramedic Aaron Rogers are credited with saving Giffords's life. David and Nancy Bowman, a married doctor and nurse couple who were shopping in the store, immediately set up triage and attended to nine-year-old Christina-Taylor Green. Police arrived on the scene at 10:15 A.M., with paramedics arriving at 10:16 A.M. Badger observed the assailant attempting to discard a small bag containing money and identification, which was recovered by the officers. Following the shooting, the police shut down roads surrounding the shopping center until late in the day. The intersection was cordoned off and most of the businesses in the shopping center were closed throughout the weekend during the initial investigation. The Safeway store reopened a week later, with a makeshift memorial erected near the front of the store.
Five people died at the scene, including Chief Judge John Roll and Giffords's community outreach director Gabe Zimmerman. Several of the injured were taken to University Medical Center in Tucson. Christina-Taylor Green was later pronounced dead on arrival at the hospital.
When Loughner's parents arrived at their home, unaware of the shootings, they found police tape and police cars around their house. Their neighbor Wayne Smith said Loughner's mother "almost passed out right there", while his father sat in the road and cried. Smith described the family as "devastated", feeling guilty, and wondering "where did they fail?" Loughner's parents released a statement three days later expressing remorse for the victims and saying, "We don't understand why this happened."
Investigation
Jared Lee Loughner, the perpetrator, was described as a white male in his mid-20s who had short hair and "dressed in a shabby manner". He was arrested after being detained by bystanders, and police later released his name and details. The FBI attempted to question Loughner, but he reportedly refused to cooperate with authorities and invoked his Fifth Amendment rights. Authorities claimed that Loughner's motive was unknown. They said that evidence seized from a safe in Loughner's home included an envelope marked with notes reading "I planned ahead", "My assassination", and "Giffords", as well as a letter from Giffords's office thanking him for attending a similar event in 2007.
Federal officials charged Loughner the next day with killing federal government employees, attempting to assassinate a member of Congress and attempting to kill federal employees. Police reports reveal he had purchased a Glock pistol at a Sportsman's Warehouse store, after passing the required FBI background check, less than six weeks before and attempted to buy additional ammunition for the pistol at a Walmart on the morning of the shooting, but the clerk refused to sell it to him based on his appearance and demeanor.
As the shooting occurred outside the Tucson city limits in unincorporated Casas Adobes, the Pima County Sheriff's Department started the initial investigation with assistance from the Tucson Police Department and the Arizona Department of Public Safety. The Federal Bureau of Investigation director Robert Mueller was ordered to the location by President Obama, and the FBI took over the investigation. The United States Capitol Police also conducted an investigation.
Perpetrator
Jared Lee Loughner, then age 22, lived with his parents Randy and Amy Loughner in Tucson, about 5 miles (8.0 km) from the site of the shooting. His mother worked for the City Parks Department; his father's work was not known. Loughner had been attending Pima Community College. Former classmates stated Loughner (at the time) cared about his education due to his appreciation of knowledge. Because of teacher and student complaints about Loughner's increasingly disruptive behavior in classes, the college suspended him on September 29, 2010, and he dropped out of the school in October. Loughner chose not to return, as the college required him to have a mental health evaluation and clearance to be readmitted.
Before the shooting, Loughner had two previous offenses, one of which was for drug possession. He had become obsessed with Giffords and had previously met her at a "Congress on your Corner" event in a Tucson mall in August 2007.
U.S. Army officials said that Loughner had attempted to enlist in 2008, but his application had been rejected as "unqualified" for service. They declined further disclosure due to confidentiality rules. An administration official indicated to the media that Loughner had failed a drug test.
Loughner had been posting material online for some time via his Myspace account and on YouTube under the name "Classitup10". He gave his views on terrorism, federal laws, and his belief that the government was brainwashing the citizenry with language. Hours before the incident, Loughner's Myspace page was updated with posts from his account stating, "Goodbye", and said to friends: "Please don't be mad at me."
On November 30, 2010, Loughner purchased a Glock 19 semi-automatic pistol at a Sportsman's Warehouse store in Tucson, passing a background check.
Earlier on the day of the shooting, Loughner reportedly had an altercation with his father regarding a black bag the younger man took from a car trunk. A bag matching the description was later found in a nearby desert area containing 9mm ammunition, and it is believed to belong to Loughner. Later that morning, at approximately 7:30 A.M., Loughner was stopped by an Arizona Game and Fish Department officer after running a red light, but was released with a warning when it was determined that he did not have any outstanding warrants.
Legal proceedings
Loughner was held in the Federal Correctional Institution at Phoenix without bail. All Arizona-based federal judges recused themselves from the case because of their ties to Judge Roll, who was killed in the attack. The federal case was assigned to a San Diego-based jurist, federal Judge Larry Alan Burns from the United States District Court for the Southern District of California. The public defender Judy Clarke, also based in San Diego, was appointed to represent Loughner in federal court.
On January 19, 2011, a federal grand jury handed down an indictment for three counts against Loughner for the attempt to assassinate Representative Giffords, and attempting to kill two federal employees, her aides Ron Barber and Pamela Simon. Loughner was indicted on additional charges of murder and attempted murder on March 3, for a total of 49 counts.
Prosecutors representing the state of Arizona filed murder and attempted murder charges on behalf of the victims who were not federal employees. Under Arizona's speedy trial statutes, Arizona state prosecutors normally have ten days from the time a suspect is taken into custody to file charges, but time spent in federal custody does not count toward this limitation. Conviction in either federal or state court meant that Loughner could face the death penalty.
On May 25, 2011, Judge Burns found Loughner incompetent to stand trial based on two medical evaluations. These evaluations had diagnosed him with paranoid schizophrenia. Loughner was ordered to be forcibly medicated following his diagnosis of schizophrenia. A new evaluation was ordered for January 25, 2012.
On February 6, 2012, his stay at the Springfield, Missouri facility was extended by four months. A request by Loughner's lawyers to end forced medication was denied. Another competency hearing was set for June 27, 2012, but later rescheduled.
On August 7, 2012, Loughner's competency hearing began with testimony from Dr. Christina Pietz, Loughner's forensic psychologist, who testified that she believed Loughner was competent to stand trial. After hearing the evidence, Judge Burns ruled that Loughner was competent to stand trial, whereupon Loughner pleaded guilty to 19 counts.
On November 8, 2012, Loughner appeared for sentencing, with several of his victims as well as relatives of those he killed in attendance. Judge Burns sentenced Loughner to seven consecutive life terms plus 140 years in prison without parole.
After his sentencing in federal court, Pima County Attorney Barbara LaWall announced that she would not prosecute Loughner on behalf of the state of Arizona. LaWall explained that her decision would afford the victims and their families, as well as the community in Tucson and Pima County, an opportunity to move forward with their lives. She said that, after speaking and consulting personally with each of the surviving victims and with the family members of those killed, it was clear that they would not be benefitted by a state prosecution. Surviving victims and family members told LaWall that they are "completely satisfied with the federal prosecution", that "justice has been served", and that the federal sentence is "suitably severe".
Victims
Six people were killed in the attack;
- Christina-Taylor Green, 9, of Tucson. Green was accompanied to the meeting by neighbor Susan Hileman. As her date of birth was September 11, 2001, she had appeared in the book Faces of Hope: Babies Born on 9/11 (page 41). She was the granddaughter of former Major League Baseball player and manager Dallas Green and the second cousin of actress Sophia Bush.
- Dorothy "Dot" Morris, 76, a retired secretary from Oro Valley; wife of George, who was wounded.
- John Roll, 63, chief judge of the U.S. District Court for Arizona, named to the federal bench by President George H. W. Bush in 1991.
- Phyllis Schneck, 79, homemaker from Tucson.
- Dorwan Stoddard, 76, retired construction worker, died from a gunshot wound to the head; his wife Mavy was wounded.
- Gabriel "Gabe" Zimmerman, 30, community outreach director for Giffords, and a member of Giffords's staff since 2006. Zimmerman was the first Congressional staffer killed in the line of duty.
In addition to the 6 dead, 13 other people were wounded by gunshot in the attack, while a 14th person was injured subduing Loughner. Gabrielle Giffords and two other members of her staff were among the surviving gunshot victims. Staffer Ron Barber, shot in the thigh and face, would later succeed Giffords in her House seat.