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Ariz. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords Shot; At Least Six Dead

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Giffords poses with House Speaker John Boehner on Capitol Hill on Wednesday, January5, 2010.

Jan 9, 6:55 p.m.

Latest from AP:

Authorities on Sunday charged a 22-year-old man described as a pot-smoking loner with trying to assassinate Rep. Gabrielle Giffords and killing others at a political event, revealing that he had scrawled on an envelope the words "my assassination" and "Giffords."

The discoveries at his home in southern Arizona, however, provided few answers to a shocked nation, from the victims of Saturday's shooting rampage to lawmakers worried about their safety: What motivated the rampage outside a supermarket that killed six and injured 14?

Giffords, 40, lay in intensive care at a Tucson hospital, after being shot in the head at close range. Doctors said she had responded repeatedly to commands to stick out her two fingers, giving them hope she may survive.

Court papers filed with the charges against Jared Loughner said he had previous contact with the Democratic lawmaker. The documents said he had received a letter from Giffords in which she thanked him for attending a "Congress on your Corner" event at a mall in Tucson in 2007.

Investigators carrying out a search warrant at his parents' home in a middle-class neighborhood found an envelope in a safe with the words "I planned ahead," "My assassination" and the name "Giffords" next to what appears to be Loughner's signature. Full story

NPR's news blog, The Two Way, is posting updates as developments come in.

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