US: Congresswoman shot at in public, six killed

Tucson:  US Representative Gabrielle Giffords of Arizona was shot in the head on Saturday when an assailant opened fire outside a grocery store during a meeting with constituents, killing at least five people including an aide to the congresswoman, a nine-year-old child and a federal judge.

Several others were wounded in a shooting rampage in Tucson, Arizona that rattled the nation.

Giffords was among at least ten people wounded, and the hospital said her outlook was "optimistic" and that she was responding to commands from doctors.

The hospital said a nine-year-old child was among those killed, and a US marshal said a federal judge was also fatally shot in the attack.

Giffords' spokesman CJ Karamargin said an unspecified number of her staff members were wounded in the shooting.

Congressional officials said an aide to the Democrat was killed, and US President Barack Obama said five people died in all.

The reaction to the shooting was swift and rippled across the globe.

Obama held a nationally televised news conference to express his condolences.

"It's not surprising that today Gabby (Giffords) was doing what she always does - listening to the hopes and concerns of her neighbours. That is the essence of what our democracy is all about. That is why this is more than a tragedy for those involved. It is a tragedy for Arizona and a tragedy for our entire country," he said.

Obama also added that Federal Bureau of Investigation Director Bob Mueller was on his way to assist with the investigation.

The shooting cast a pall over the Capitol as politicians of all stripes denounced the shooting as a horrific act of violence.

Capitol police asked members of Congress to step up security in the wake of the shooting, and some politicians expressed hope that the killing spree serves as a wakeup call at a time when the political climate has become so emotionally charged.

Police said the shooter was in custody, and was identified by people familiar with the investigation as 22-year-old Jared Loughner.

Pima County Sheriff's officials said he used a pistol to carry out the shooting spree.

US officials who provided his name to the Associated Press spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorised to release it publicly.

His exact motivation was not immediately clear.

Federal law enforcement officials were poring over captured versions of a MySpace page that belonged to Jared Loughner and over Youtube video published to the Internet weeks ago under an account "classitup10" and linked to him.

The MySpace page, which was removed within minutes of the gunman being identified by US officials, included a mysterious "Goodbye friends" message published hours before the shooting and exhorted his friends to "Please don't be mad at me."

In one of several Youtube videos, which featured text against a dark background, Loughner described inventing a new US currency and complained about the illiteracy rate among people living in Giffords' congressional district in Arizona.

Two spellings of his last name were given in the aftermath of the shooting Loughner and Laughner.

US Marshal for Arizona David Gonzales confirmed to the Associated Press that US District Judge John Roll was one of the dead.

Giffords, 40-years-old, was first elected to Congress amid a wave of Democratic victories in the 2006 election, and she won a narrow victory against a favourite of the ultraconservative tea party movement in the 2010 election.

She has been mentioned as a possible Senate candidate in 2012 and gubernatorial prospect in 2014.
Giffords is married to astronaut Mark E. Kelly, who has piloted space shuttles Endeavour and Discovery.

The two met in China in 2003 while they were serving on a committee there, and were married in January 2007.

Giffords, known as "Gabby" in Arizona, tweeted shortly before the shooting, describing her "Congress on Your Corner" event: "My 1st Congress on Your Corner starts now. Please stop by to let me know what is on your mind or tweet me later."

Arizona Governor Jan Brewer said that all of Arizona was "shocked and deeply saddened by the horrific tragedy."

Giffords has drawn the ire of the right in the last year, especially from politicians like former Alaska Governor Sarah Palin over her support of Obama's health care reform bill.

Her Tucson office was vandalised a few hours after the House voted to approve the health care law in March, with someone either kicking or shooting out a glass door and window.

Law enforcement officials and reporters from around the country descended on
Tucson, the second biggest city in the state and home to the University of Arizona.

The scene has been converted into a command post with about a dozen or so emergency vehicles and agents in FBI (Federal Bureau of Investigations) jackets milling about the location.

The shooting occurred at a shopping centre called La Toscana Village in Tucson.

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