Ariz. Rep. Giffords in serious condition after Tucson shooting; eight others inj

[klaasend]

http://www.kold.com/Global/story.asp?S=13868815

Email: Rep. Giffords to fly to Houston for aggressive rehab
Posted: Jan 19, 2011 7:51 AM PST Updated: Jan 19, 2011 9:35 AM PST


TUCSON, AZ (KOLD) - Rep. Giffords will fly to Houston after being discharged from University Medical Center Friday, according to an email from Giffords' parents to CNN.

KOLD News 13 obtained a copy of that email. In the statement, Giffords' parents, Gloria and Spencer, share their gratitude for the "outpouring of love and prayers."

Thousands have responded with cards, flowers and food, the statement says. The police and federal marshals, plus other folks in the waiting room are eating 3 meals a day.

Rep. Giffords continues to demonstrate complex actions. Her parents shared a story of the congresswoman untying her husband's tie and unbuttoning his shirt after returning to UMC from a memorial service.

Giffords was looking at some cards grade schoolers had sent. Her eye was tracking the lines of written text. Her parents believe she was reading them.

The following is an email written by Rep. Giffords' parents, Gloria and Spencer:

The surgeons are ecstatic...Spence and I are humbled by the outpouring of love and prayers and overwhelmed with gratitude.

There are thousands of people who have responded with cards, flowers, FOOD (we're feeding all the cops and federal marshals in UMC 3 square meals a day as well as folks in two other patient waiting rooms....almost like the loaves and fishes).  The entire front lawn of the hospital as well as the perimeter of her congressional office in Tucson  is illuminated by thousands of candles, get well placards, hers and the other victim's photos,  prayers, stuffed animals, and people.

You can feel the energy.

Everyday Gabby improves and shows higher levels of comprehension and complex actions. Yesterday when Mark came back from speaking at her aide's memorial service, she reached up and untied his tie and undid the top button to his shirt.  (One of the nurses on the wing I was visiting with told me...'You know where this is goin'.') 

Last night she took his I pod and scrolled through all the pictures.  Early this morning she began to read cards made for her by some 4th graders! Her unbandaged eye tracked the lines, she opened the cards and turned them over reading the back. Mark's gotten pages of large print of Harry Potter's 1st book for her to hold and read (he's not read any of them so this should interesting).

Saturday in a 5 hour surgery they removed all the tubes from her mouth, did a tracheotomy (although she is breathing great on her own) and inserted a stomach tube for feeding.  Before surgery that morning she gave Mark a 20 minute back and neck rub.

They also placed a steel plate over her right eye where the optic bridge was crushed.  (The stitching is beautiful.)  Her eyes appear to be fine...no optic nerve damage they believe.  She came through with flying colors and all her neurological functions, temp., blood, etc.  normal. They have her sitting up in a chair.

She had minor surgery this AM to remove some bone particles that were working out through her scalp and to tidy up the incision on her forehead where the bullet entered.  She did well also.

They are even now having her move limbs on command.  So now comes the "true grit" part....and won't be a stroll in a park although Mark predicts she'll be up and walking around in 2 weeks.  The physical and occupational therapy will proceed side by side and it'll be stringent.

There is a team of medical specialists involved...including military surgeons who specialize in bullet wounds to the head.  They want to start aggressive rehab immediately and are flying her to Houston facilities Friday.  I'll go with her  along with Mark and Dr. Rhee and see where I fit into the rehab process, to get an apartment, returning in a couple days to finish up work here, and then back to Texas with Spencer for as long as it takes.

As she becomes more alert and her right eye gets un bandaged she'll begin to communicate more and when the trachea is removed, speak. You notice I'm speaking in the present tense...because that's where all your future prayers  are going to come in...Please help us realize that Gabby as an expression of God cannot be less than perfect and her healing complete.

Our love and appreciation - Gloria and Spencer

[MuffyBee]

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/nation/7392186.html
Donations pour in for Tucson shooting victims
January 21, 2011

More than $145,000 has been donated to two Tucson agencies on behalf of Arizona congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords and the other victims of the Jan. 8 shootings.

The Arizona Daily Star reported Friday that donors have given more than $92,000 to the Community Food Bank and $53,000 to the American Red Cross.

A spokesman for the Community Food Bank of Southern Arizona says the money is going into a restricted fund. The food bank will wait until Giffords and her husband, Mark Kelly, tell them how to use the funds.

The shootings left six people dead and 13 wounded, including Giffords, who was moved Friday from a Tucson hospital to a rehabilitation center in Houston.

[MuffyBee]

http://www.kktv.com/news/headlines/Assassination_Case_Against_Loughner_Likely_To_Take_Years_114452384.html?ref=384
Assassination Case Against Loughner Likely To Take Years
As Jared Loughner prepares for his next day in court, legal experts anticipate that Monday is only the beginning of a lengthy legal proceeding.
January 23, 2011

As Jared Loughner prepares for his next day in court, legal experts anticipate that Monday is only the beginning of a lengthy legal proceeding.

Loughner, who stands accused of attempting to assassinate Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, will probably see his case go through several phases of the criminal justice system: prosecutions by federal and state authorities, proceedings over whether the case should be moved to a different venue, a possible insanity defense and a probable push for the death penalty. Experts say that the conclusion to Loughner’s legal journey is probably years away.

The case against Loughner is building, as investigators have analyzed items seized from Loughner’s home, conducted interviews of both witnesses and acquaintances of the suspect, and studied surveillance video from the Tucson Safeway where the January 7 shooting spree occurred.

Loughner will be in a Phoenix court on Monday afternoon for an arraignment, which is the formal reading in front of the defendant to inform him or her of the charges against them.

[klaasend]

http://www.kvoa.com/news/nurses-bond-with-giffords/

Nurses bond with Giffords

Posted: Jan 24, 2011 4:02 PM
Updated: Jan 24, 2011 4:59 PM

TUCSON - One of the nurses who works in University Medical Center's Trauma ICU is invited to President Barack Obama's State of the Union address on Tuesday.

On Monday Tracy Culbert and four other Trauma ICU nurses talked to reporters about what it was like to treat Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords and other January 8th shooting victims.

Culbert says she's honored to be invited to Washington, D.C. But she's hoping for a greater reward.

Culbert says, "My biggest gift in nursing is when my patients come back and see me and they say thank you and we get to see them with their life and happy again."

All of the nurses say their patients' notoriety didn't matter to them.

Nurse Aubreena Beckel says, "We cared for these people exactly how we care for every other patient that comes in this hospital."

Still some say they made bonds with Giffords that they'll never forget.

For nurse Angelique Tadeo, it was music. She says, "She {Giffords} likes this one band that is not very common. A lot of people have never even heard of it. And it's one of my very favorites too. It was Mana, sort of a Mexican rock band that I just love and so does she apparently. So it was nice, I got to bring in a CD for her and we listened to it every night."

Culbert says she and Giffords shared love for their fathers.

Culbert says, "She {Giffords} grabbed my necklace and she started looking at my necklace. My dad passed away about three years ago and this {necklace} is a fingerprint impression of his thumb and I was telling her about it. And I started to get tears in my eyes. And she reached up and she was holding my arm and rubbing my arm. And she reached in to pull me forward to hug me. And I said Gabby you're going to make me cry. And she patted my back like it's okay, it's okay."

[MuffyBee]

http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-jared-loughner-20110125,0,2181209.story
Not guilty plea is entered for Jared Loughner in Tucson attacks
The suspect smiles through a court appearance in which he is arraigned on charges that he tried to assassinate Rep. Gabrielle Giffords and two of her aides in the shooting rampage that killed six.
January 24, 2011

Reporting from Phoenix —

His hands and feet shackled, Jared Lee Loughner on Monday shuffled into the special proceedings courtroom in the federal courthouse here to answer charges that he tried to assassinate U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords during a shooting rampage that killed six.

He was beaming.

Loughner, 22, continued to flash an uncanny, self-satisfied grin throughout the otherwise routine nine-minute arraignment. He sat down and leaned back in his chair, crossing his legs. He glanced at the domed room, normally used for naturalization ceremonies or other special events, and his smile got even broader. His attorney, Judy Clarke, whispered something to him. Loughner chortled.

Clarke asked U.S. District Court Judge Larry A. Burns to enter a plea for her client. Burns recorded Loughner as pleading not guilty. Loughner stared straight ahead and kept smiling.

A grand jury had indicted Loughner in the Jan. 8 shooting of Giffords and two of her aides at a Tucson shopping center. More charges are expected in the slayings of Gabriel Zimmerman, a Giffords staffer, and John M. Roll, the presiding judge of the federal courthouse in Tucson. Those charges could make Loughner eligible for the death penalty if he is convicted.

Monday's hearing was Loughner's second court appearance since the attack. In a mug shot released on the day of his prior appearance, he sported a shaved head and deep smile. Some of his hair has grown back since then. On Monday he wore glasses, an orange jumpsuit and canvas sneakers.

All Arizona judges have recused themselves from the case, so it is being heard by Judge Burns of San Diego. Legal observers expect the case to pivot on an insanity defense. Loughner left behind a trail of disjointed writings, and numerous friends and acquaintances have said they thought he was mentally unstable.

Burns asked Clarke if her client's state of mind enabled him to understand the charges and her job representing him. "We are not raising that issue at this time," said Clarke, a veteran capital-defense attorney who also represented Unabomber Theodore Kaczynski and Atlanta Olympics bomber Eric Rudolph. Both escaped death and are serving life sentences.

Clarke said she did not object to a motion by federal prosecutors to move later hearings back to Tucson, although legal observers expect her to eventually try to have the trial moved out of state. Prosecutors said they have turned over to Clarke 45 discs worth of material taken from Loughner's computer and 250 interviews with witnesses.

Then Burns adjourned the hearing, and U.S. marshals led Loughner back to his cell.

[MuffyBee]

http://www.foxnews.com/us/2011/01/29/arizona-shooting-case-moves-tucson/
Arizona Shooting Case Moves to Tucson for Now
January 29, 2011

PHOENIX -- Prosecutors and defense lawyers have agreed that the federal case against the suspect in the shooting of Rep. Gabrielle Giffords will be held in Tucson, at least for now.

The case against Jared Lee Loughner was moved to Phoenix after federal judges in Tucson recused themselves because a fellow judge died in the attack.

Loughner was arraigned Monday in Phoenix. Prosecutors then requested the move so victims and witnesses would not have to drive there.

The deal doesn't prevent future requests for moves.
(snip)
His next court is set for March 9.

[Sister]

http://www.foxnews.com/us/2011/01/29/arizona-shooting-case-moves-tucson/
Arizona Shooting Case Moves to Tucson for Now
January 29, 2011

PHOENIX -- Prosecutors and defense lawyers have agreed that the federal case against the suspect in the shooting of Rep. Gabrielle Giffords will be held in Tucson, at least for now.

The case against Jared Lee Loughner was moved to Phoenix after federal judges in Tucson recused themselves because a fellow judge died in the attack.

Loughner was arraigned Monday in Phoenix. Prosecutors then requested the move so victims and witnesses would not have to drive there.

The deal doesn't prevent future requests for moves.
(snip)
His next court is set for March 9.

His trials will probably last longer than I will live . . . and I hope I am looking at 30 more years at least.
 

[MuffyBee]

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/space/7412991.html
Astronaut Kelly -- Giffords' husband -- will fly on shuttle
February 4, 2011

Astronaut Mark Kelly has decided to command the upcoming flight of space shuttle Endeavour, NASA announced Friday.

Kelly, the husband of congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords, has been on personal leave for nearly a month to care for his wife, who was critically wounded in a Tucson, Ariz. shooting.
(snip)
The flight will be the next-to-last for the space shuttle program, and Endeavour will be making its final flight to space.

Launch is targeted for April 19.

[klaasend]

http://www.cnn.com/2011/HEALTH/02/09/giffords.recovery/

Spokesman: Giffords recovering part of her ability to speak

(CNN) -- U.S. Representative Gabrielle Giffords, recovering from a gunshot wound to the head sustained January 8, is regaining part of her ability to speak, her spokesman said Wednesday.

C.J. Karamargin would not divulge what Giffords has said, other than saying she asked for toast.

"It's very good news," he told CNN.

Giffords is at TIRR Memorial Hermann rehabilitation hospital in Houston. She was moved there late last month from University Medical Center in Tucson, Arizona, where she was taken after the shooting at a "Congress on Your Corner" event at a Tucson supermarket.

Six people were killed in the incident; Giffords was among 13 injured. Authorities have said they believe Giffords was targeted in the shooting. A 22-year-old suspect, Jared Lee Loughner, is facing federal charges.

Giffords' office said she actually spoke her first words before Wednesday morning, but has been speaking more since then.

"The reason for choosing this rehab facility is because of their track record," Karamargin said. "They are doing a fabulous job and working with her language and speech exercise and the physical therapy part of it."

CNN Chief Medical Correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta called it "a very important development" for Giffords.

He noted that Giffords was able to follow commands just after the shooting. One of her doctors told CNN Giffords was able to squeeze his hand when he asked her to just after her arrival at the hospital.
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[klaasend]

http://www.foxnews.com/health/2011/02/17/giffords-speaking-laughing/?test=latestnews

Giffords Speaking More, Laughing

Published February 17, 2011

| Associated Press

[MuffyBee]

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2011/mar/05/giffords-shooting-death-penalty
Giffords shooting suspect may face death penalty

Six people were killed and 13 wounded; Giffords was shot through the head and remains in hospital in Houston
March 5, 2011

[MuffyBee]

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/ap/tx/7480696.html
Ariz. vet gives his Purple Heart coin to Giffords
March 19, 2011

[MuffyBee]

http://news.yahoo.com/s/yblog_thelookout/20110324/us_yblog_thelookout/youngest-tucson-shooting-victim-to-be-memorialized-with-911-statue
Youngest Tucson shooting victim to be memorialized with 9/11 statue
March 24, 2011

Nine-year-old Christina Taylor Green will be memorialized with a nine-foot, eleven-inch statue made in part out of a steel beam from the World Trade Center. Green was born on Sept. 9, 2001, and was featured in the book Faces of Hope: Babies Born on 9/11.

Green was one of the six killed at Rep. Gabrielle Giffords' "Congress on Your Corner" event in January.
 ::snipping2::

[MuffyBee]

http://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/os-gabrielle-giffords-050811-20110506,0,5377262.story
Video
CNN explores: How did Rep. Gabrielle Giffords survive shooting?
May 6, 2011

[MuffyBee]

http://www.khou.com/home/Report-Gabrielle-Giffords-enjoys-night-out-in-Houston--121348114.html
Report: Gabrielle Giffords enjoys night out in Houston

HOUSTON – Gabrielle Giffords got a break from the rehab routine earlier this week and went on a date night with her husband, according to Culture Map.

The website reports Giffords was surrounded by security when she was wheeled into Grotto’s private wine room in the Galleria area.
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[MuffyBee]

http://abcnews.go.com/Technology/wireStory?id=13608190
Endeavour Ready to Go; Giffords Arrives to Watch
May 15, 2011

With wounded Rep. Gabrielle Giffords on hand to watch, the space shuttle Endeavour is poised to give the work week a roaring and historic start Monday morning, overcoming wiring problems that grounded it last month.

Giffords' arrival Sunday afternoon included a quick fly-by of Endeavour on the launch pad, ready to go.

"Gabrielle is excited for tomorrow's launch. Do you plan to see history in the making?" her staff tweeted:

NASA officials said conditions — from weather to technical issues — couldn't look much better for the scheduled 8:56 a.m. launch Monday.
 ::snipping2::

[MuffyBee]

http://www.statesman.com/news/texas/out-of-view-giffords-sees-husbands-shuttle-launch-1477880.html
Out of view Giffords sees husband's shuttle launch
May 16, 2011

[MuffyBee]

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/metropolitan/7569160.html
Surgeons to attach portion of skull to Giffords
May 17, 2011

Houston neurosurgeons Wednesday will restore a missing piece of U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords' skull that left nearly half of her brain exposed during four months of rehabilitation from a gunshot wound, sources told the Houston Chronicle Tuesday.

Dr. Dong Kim and a team at the Memorial Hermann Hospital System will install the piece, a key step in the congresswoman's recovery from a January assassination attempt. The procedure will come four months after Arizona doctors removed part of her skull to relieve pressure that would have caused greater damage to her swelling brain.
 ::snipping2::
During the 1½- to 2-hour procedure, surgeons will attach a plastic computer-generated implant — Giffords' own skull piece was contaminated by the shooting — with small titanium screws and plates. The piece will cover most of the left side of her head, currently covered by only skin and hair.

Over the coming months, new bone will grow into the piece.

Although she often wore a helmet to protect it, Giffords' brain was visibly swollen and vulnerable for much of her time at TIRR Memorial Hermann, the system's elite rehabilitation facility. It had gone down significantly enough recently that she could make trips outside, including in recent weeks to Johnson Space Center multiple times, dinner gatherings and twice to Florida.

The surgery will come two days after Giffords returned from watching her husband, astronaut Mark Kelly, command the final launch of the space shuttle Endeavour.
 ::snipping2::

[MuffyBee]

http://www.khou.com/news/Loughner-found-incompetent-to-stand-trial-in-Giffords-shooting-122609839.html
Loughner found incompetent to stand trial in Giffords shooting
May 25, 2011

TUCSON, Ariz. -- The man accused of wounding U.S. Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords and killing six is mentally incompetent to stand trial, a judge ruled Wednesday after U.S. Marshals dragged the man out of the courtroom because of an angry outburst.

As survivors of the deadly January attack looked on, Jared Lee Loughner lowered his head, raised it and said what sounded like "Thank you for the freak show. She died in front of me." His words were loud but mumbled, and it wasn’t clear who he was talking about. He wore a khaki prison suit and sported bushy, reddish sideburns.

U.S. District Judge Larry Burns’ decision means the 22-year-old will be sent to a federal facility for up to four months, to see if he can improve to the point where he understands the case against him.

The ruling came after two mental health professionals said they concluded Loughner suffers from schizophrenia and is mentally unfit for trial.
 ::snipping2::
Loughner has pleaded not guilty to 49 federal charges stemming from the Jan. 8 shooting at a meet-and-greet event that wounded Giffords and 12 others and killed six people, including a 9-year-old girl and a federal judge.
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[klaasend]

She looks beautiful!  Look at that smile!


http://www.cnn.com/2011/HEALTH/06/12/giffords.photos/index.html?eref=mrss_igoogle_cnn

Giffords to begin outpatient therapy
By the CNN Wire Staff
June 12, 2011 9:03 a.m. EDT

(CNN) -- U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords will leave her rehabilitation facility and begin outpatient therapy by the end of June, her spokesman said Sunday.

She will depart TIRR Memorial Hermann Hospital in Houston and remain in Texas for therapy, C.J. Karmargin said.

News of the milestone in Giffords' recovery came as the public saw the first photos of her face since she was shot in the head in January.

Taken outside, the photos show her smiling. She has short hair and is wearing glasses. One photo shows her alone, smiling at the camera; in the other, she is sitting alongside another woman.

The photos, published Sunday on her Facebook page, were taken May 17 -- the day before she underwent skull surgery at TIRR Memorial Hermann Hospital in Houston, according to a message alongside the photos.


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