Reports: Loughner to offer guilty plea in Gabrielle Giffords shooting

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Jared Lee Loughner, the man charged in the shooting last year that injured then-Rep. Gabrielle Giffords and left six other people dead, is expected to offer a guilty plea Tuesday.

“Mental health officials believe he is now competent to understand the charges against him in the assault,” the Los Angeles Times first reported Saturday evening, citing “knowledgeable sources.”

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...in light of questions about Loughner’s mental health and the lengthy period of time he has spent in psychiatric treatment at a federal facility, it’s far from certain that U.S. District Judge Larry Burns will accept his guilty plea. In order to plead guilty, a defendant must be mentally competent in much the same way he or she must be competent to stand trial.

Following the Times’s report, the Wall Street Journal Saturday cited “an official familiar with the case” also saying Loughner was set to plead guilty Tuesday.

Read more: http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0812/79379.html#ixzz22dwwPPJL