Congresswoman Giffords, Others Shot; At Least 6 Dead
Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords has been shot, and as many as a dozen people were wounded in the attack as the three-term Democrat was meeting constituents outside a grocery store.
An aide to Rep. Gabrielle Giffords has died after an attack in Tucson, Arizona. A hospital official says the congresswoman herself is alive but in critical condition after being shot in the head.
A 9-year-old girl and a federal judge are dead after an attack outside a Tucson, Ariz., grocery story that's left Rep. Gabrielle Giffords in critical condition with a gunshot wound to the head. A federal law enforcement official identifies one of the victims as U.S. District Judge John Roll. The girl has not been identified.
The assailant sprayed bullets into an area where the Democratic lawmaker was hosting a "Congress on Your Corner" event at a Safeway supermarket.
Police said the suspect, Jared Loughner, 22, has had one minor run-in with the law. Little information is known immediately about Laughner - such as his background or a possible motive in the attack.
Forty-year old Giffords was re-elected to her third term last November. She was a member of the Arizona House and Senate before coming to Washington.
President Obama made a public statement Saturday saying, "She is not only an extraordinary public servant, but she is also someone who is warm and caring , she is well-liked by her colleagues and well-like by her constituents."
U.S. Senator Debbie Stabenow released a statement Saturday stating, "The shooting of Rep. Gabrielle Giffords was a horrifying act of violence that has no place in our democracy. She is a courageous and dedicated Congresswoman who engaged with her constituents and listened to their concerns."
CBS News Capitol Hill Correspondent Nancy Cordes says Giffords has been the target of violence before this shooting.
Giffords had just won a tough fight for re-election, she was one of the Democrats that seemed to be a target of vandalism, after she voted in favor of health care reform last year. It was in March 2009 just after the final vote, the door of her office in her home district was shattered, it looked like it had been shot. At the time Giffords said, "We've got to take a time out folks, we've gone too far in certain areas, and this should not be tolerated."
The hospital says the congresswoman is responding to doctors' commands and her outlook is ``optimistic.''
CBS News correspondent Bob Orr reports that the gun recovered at the scene is a 9mm Glock pistol. Sources earlier said it was equipped with an extended magazine. There is no word on the number of rounds fired.
A law enforcement source told CBS News that a man apparently stood up in the crowd during the town hall meeting, shouted something and then opened fire. Someone - possibly police or security - then shot at the gunman.
The gunman has been apprehended but it is unknown if he was wounded.
Several members of Michigan's congressional delegation say they are "shocked and horrified" by the shootings, read more here.
