TUCSON — Jared L. Loughner is expected to be sentenced to life in prison on Thursday, three months after pleading guilty to 19 criminal counts in federal court, including murder and the attempted assassination of former Representative Gabrielle Giffords, who had been the target of the attack.
Before the sentencing hearing began Thursday morning, Ms. Giffords sat in a corner at the end of a courtroom bench, next to her husband, Mark E. Kelly.
Mr. Kelly was scheduled to read a statement on behalf of his wife, who continues to have difficulty speaking. It was the first time the family has confronted Mr. Loughner.
Congressman Ron Barber, who was hit in the leg during the shooting, was also scheduled to speak, along with at least eight other victims, according to court officials. Yellow boxes of tissues had been placed on the edge of each courtroom bench.
Mr. Loughner, 24, who has been held at a federal hospital in Missouri for more than a year undergoing psychiatric examinations, has been given a diagnosis of schizophrenia, but he was deemed competent in August to agree to the plea deal, under which he is not eligible for parole or to appeal his sentence.
On Jan. 8, 2011, Mr. Loughner arrived at a public event being hosted by Ms. Giffords, then a member of the United States House of Representatives, at a Tucson shopping center, armed with a loaded Glock 9-millimeter pistol and carrying 60 rounds of extra ammunition.
In less than 30 seconds, he fired 31 shots, killing six people and injuring 13 others. He stopped shooting only when he paused to reload. He was eventually tackled and restrained by onlookers.
The dead included John M. Roll, 63, a federal court judge, Gabriel M. Zimmerman, 30, who had been an aide to Ms. Giffords, and 9-year-old Christina-Taylor Green.
Ms. Giffords was gravely wounded after being shot in the head.
Mr. Loughner, a community college student, had originally pleaded not guilty to 49 charges connected to the shooting spree. He had for years exhibited signs of mental illness, including yelling out in high school classes and complaining about voices in his head.
At a court hearing in May 2011, he interrupted the proceedings with an incoherent outburst and was removed from the courtroom. It was at that hearing that Judge Larry A. Burns, a federal distirct court judge, ruled Mr. Loughner incompetent to stand trial.
Mr. Loughner was initially being medicated by force, under orders of the Bureau of Prisons, but has been voluntarily taking medication since this summer.
Dr. Christina Pietz, a psychologist who has been treating Mr. Loughner, said that over time he had become cognizant of his actions.
Dr. Pietz testified at the August hearing that Mr. Loughner’s feelings had evolved from regret for failing to kill Ms. Giffords, against whom he had harbored a secret grudge for several years, to contrition for wounding her and others and for taking people’s lives.
“I especially cried for the child” and “yelled a lot because it hurt so bad,” Mr. Loughner once told Dr. Pietz, she testified, reading from notes she had kept of their encounters.
Ms. Giffords resigned from Congress in January 2012 to focus on her recovery.
Timothy Williams contributed reporting from New York.
Before the sentencing hearing began Thursday morning, Ms. Giffords sat in a corner at the end of a courtroom bench, next to her husband, Mark E. Kelly.
Mr. Kelly was scheduled to read a statement on behalf of his wife, who continues to have difficulty speaking. It was the first time the family has confronted Mr. Loughner.
Congressman Ron Barber, who was hit in the leg during the shooting, was also scheduled to speak, along with at least eight other victims, according to court officials. Yellow boxes of tissues had been placed on the edge of each courtroom bench.
Mr. Loughner, 24, who has been held at a federal hospital in Missouri for more than a year undergoing psychiatric examinations, has been given a diagnosis of schizophrenia, but he was deemed competent in August to agree to the plea deal, under which he is not eligible for parole or to appeal his sentence.
On Jan. 8, 2011, Mr. Loughner arrived at a public event being hosted by Ms. Giffords, then a member of the United States House of Representatives, at a Tucson shopping center, armed with a loaded Glock 9-millimeter pistol and carrying 60 rounds of extra ammunition.
In less than 30 seconds, he fired 31 shots, killing six people and injuring 13 others. He stopped shooting only when he paused to reload. He was eventually tackled and restrained by onlookers.
The dead included John M. Roll, 63, a federal court judge, Gabriel M. Zimmerman, 30, who had been an aide to Ms. Giffords, and 9-year-old Christina-Taylor Green.
Ms. Giffords was gravely wounded after being shot in the head.
Mr. Loughner, a community college student, had originally pleaded not guilty to 49 charges connected to the shooting spree. He had for years exhibited signs of mental illness, including yelling out in high school classes and complaining about voices in his head.
At a court hearing in May 2011, he interrupted the proceedings with an incoherent outburst and was removed from the courtroom. It was at that hearing that Judge Larry A. Burns, a federal distirct court judge, ruled Mr. Loughner incompetent to stand trial.
Mr. Loughner was initially being medicated by force, under orders of the Bureau of Prisons, but has been voluntarily taking medication since this summer.
Dr. Christina Pietz, a psychologist who has been treating Mr. Loughner, said that over time he had become cognizant of his actions.
Dr. Pietz testified at the August hearing that Mr. Loughner’s feelings had evolved from regret for failing to kill Ms. Giffords, against whom he had harbored a secret grudge for several years, to contrition for wounding her and others and for taking people’s lives.
“I especially cried for the child” and “yelled a lot because it hurt so bad,” Mr. Loughner once told Dr. Pietz, she testified, reading from notes she had kept of their encounters.
Ms. Giffords resigned from Congress in January 2012 to focus on her recovery.
Timothy Williams contributed reporting from New York.