loughner had very difficult choices here. he could go do trial. if he loses he gets the death penalty. he will not be acquitted on failure of the evidence. that means it is insanity. but the trick here in arizona, like in federal law, the defense has to prove that the defendant is insane by clear and convincing evidence. it is called an affirmative defense. the defense has to prove something. it is very, very difficult. the only other option was to plead guilty and to save his life he will show a judge he get what happens is going on so he can take the plea. >>arthur: is it okay for the government to sneak medicine to you, to make you, to alter your state to a point where you --. >>shepard: are we sure that is what they did? >>arthur: that was reported this morning. the word that was used was "he was forced," to take medication. >>randy: you can be ordered to take it against your will. >>shepard: forcing is one thing. >>arthur: so he is forced to take the medication so he is aware and alert so the judge says, you understand what is going on? you w

interview, diane sawyer asked the couple about loughner. couple about loughner. and they both saidey h >> it was obvious that he had seiouses. if he would have received some treatment, this probably would not have happene >> no. no. no. no. life. life. >> also in the courtroom, the psychologist said once loughner began to understand his crimes, he wanted to be executed. we should also say, loughner's mother was in the courtroom. quietly we ther. dan harris, abc ns, n >> thank you, dan. >> that's really something that his parents were there, his pmotte win t1 o heard voices in head for years. a very, very sick man. >> in a case like this, what is worse -- the death penalty, which i think most people agree you take that many lives you deserved it. when you think of the practicality of the situation. to me the worst existence on the pyocuaris to spend the rest of to me, the two to three minutes to kill you through the needle that is easy. with that gan incarcerated individual, that i can't imagine anything more punishing than that. a much hard

loughner is set to be sentenced on november 15th. karen brown, cbs news, tucson, arizona. >> officials in wisconsin are still searching for a motive in the attack on a sikh temple. a vigil was held to remember the victims. six people were killed by wade page. investigators say page was involved in the white supremacist movement. local police tell cbs' elaine quijano, they don't believe it was premeditated. >> do you think the attack was planned well in advance? >> no, i don't. i personally don't from everything i've seen. i don't think there's any indication this was a well thought out plan type thing. >> the first funerals for the victims are scheduled for friday. >>> twitter has accepted a court order to identify a user who threatened a theater here in new york city. the threat was made against the long acre theater where mike tyson is appearing in a one-man show. the tweet read, people are going to die just like in aurora. an apparent reference to last month's theater shooting in colorado. four days ago the company had refused to

now jared lee loughner has struck a plea deal.he death penalty and he will be formally sentenced to life in prison without parole. retired army colonel bill badger was one of the 13 people wounded that day. he didn't even realize he had been shot before he helped take down loughner. thank you so much for your bravery and all of the people you helped that day. we appreciate it. >> you're welcome. >> can you give me a sense of how you're feeling right now? there has been some outcry, some people saying loughner should have faced the death penalty. they feel they were cheated i this way. what is your reaction? do you agree or do you feel this puts the whole episode behind you and you can now move on? >> it puts the whole episode behind me and we can now move on. i think we will start to heal now and i've talked to all of the other viims and that's pretty well the consensus of opinion, that we're glad that we don't have to go to a trial. we think it would have been a long trial and so we feel a sense of relief right now and we're sati

judge larry burns questioned loughner who is now 23. loughner answered directly with short answers. asked if he understood, he was taking responsibility for the deadly attack, he said, yes. i understand. loughner showed no emotion when the judge read him the names of the victims and asked him if he understood his guilty plea. do you have a clear mind, a clear head? yes, loughner answered. i do. his own lawyers did not object or try to prevent him from pleading. giffords, who wasn't in court, said she was satisfied with the plea. her husband, mark kelly wrote, by avoiding a trial the community can continue with our recovery and move forward with our lives. survivors in the courtroom wipe back tears and said they supported the court's decision. >> we need to move forward and make sure that good comes out of this. >> it's not a perfect solution. the perfect solution is one that we can't have. >> jared lee loughner will officially be sentenced november 15th. he will not be eligible for parole. brian? >> miguel almaguer, starting us off from tucson tonight. miguel, thanks. >>> in the mil

loughner was noticeably more alert. even the judge commented on how loughner is a different person than in the past and said he noticed he was tracking meaning loughner was following the activity. our producer also says when loughner was pleading guilty to the numerous charges, he sounded very monotone. at the end of court, his parents were seen sitting the courthouse in. tucson. now the movie theater massacre in aurora, colorado. we're learning just weeks before that shooting happened, the psychiatrist who treated the suspect, james holmes, contacted the cops at the university of colorado. the details are still unclear to us tonight. but sources tell a local station in denver, that the psychiatrist requested a background check on james holmes. last week, sources told abc and "the denver post" newspaper that the psychiatrist also warned the university of colorado's threat assessment team. those officials reportedly did nothing. ultimately dropping their investigation when james holmes quit the ph.d. program. less than t

loughner's mother was in the courtroom as well.eportedly weeping quietly, george. >> and the feds really wanted this to compare the victims' families from going all through this again. >> that's exactly right. >>> and now to the more recent mass shooting america is still trying to comprehend. we are gathering new clues from the gunman who opened fire inside that sikh temple in wisconsin. and vivid memories of the victims inside. >> reporter: how did a bright smiling little boy named wade michael page turn into a cold-blooded killer? that's the question looming over the nation and his family. >> he told us that was the best thing he could have ever done, joined the military. we were happy for him. now, i greatly question that direction. >> reporter: abc news has learned page had deep ties to white supremacist hate groups. ♪ adapt to the trying time ♪ ♪ >> he felt that the movement so-called was not doing much of anything and that somebody had to get out there and start killing. >> reporter: among the people investigators are speakin

to each count, loughner answered "i plead guilty."n exchange for his plea, federal prosecutors agreed not to seek the death penalty. u.s. attorney john s. leonardo. >> mr. loughner will spend the remainder of his natural life in prison with no possibility of parole. >> reporter: representative ron barber was shot that day. he was giffords' congressional aide who recently won her seat. >> my hope is that what happened today in this court can help all of us move forward and continue our healing process. >> reporter: susie heilemann was shot as she accompanied nine-year-old christina taylor green that day. taylor green was killed. >> it doesn't make it any easier to think about a dead nine-year-old. >> reporter: former congresswoman giffords and her husband relieved her statement today saying they are satisfied with the plea agreement, avoiding trial, they say, will allow them and arizona to move on. bob? >> schieffer: okay. thank you very much, bill. the plea deal in tucson came as authorities in wisconsin got more details on the white

loughner will serve a life prison in sentence. karen travers, abc2 news washington. >>> a former university of maryland student charged with making threats on campus submitted a guilty plea on charges of disturbing the peace and pg county county prosecutors said he will continue receiving mental health treatment and must perform community service. he has withdrawn from his classes and is banned from campus. >>> coming up, a california woman snatches a baby. how she smulged the baby -- smuggled the baby out of the hospital. >>> hey, you want to track the showers? it's easy to do with our mobile app. crop can get the showers -- you can get the showers right down to the beach. we have more coming up. ♪ ♪ pop goes the world ♪ it goes something like this ♪ everybody here is a friend of mine ♪ ♪ everybody, tell me, have you heard? ♪ [ female announcer ] pop in a whole new kind of clean with new tide pods... a powerful three-in-one detergent that cleans, brightens, and fights stains. just one removes more stains than the 6 next leading p

square read loughner due back in court in just a couple hours he is expected to plead guilty in last year's shooting in tucson. the question of his competency must be answeredder. here is karen brown this arizona with the latest for wjz. >> reporter: jared loughner is expected to plead guilty to killing six people and injuring 13 others including former congress woman gabrielle gifford it is shootings took place at a tucson shopping center, january 2011 but first, loughners attorneys must convince the judge he is mentally competent to understand the charges against him. >> i am sure the judge will talk to mr. loughner ask him some questions engage in some dialogue so that the judge is convinced he does understand, what is going on. >> the same judge said last year loughner was mentally unfit, to stand trial. loughner's lawyers are now hoping he will be sentenced to life in prison, instead of receiving the death penalty. survivors of the shooting say the most important outcome for them is that jared loughner is off the streets forever. they plan on being in court today, but gabby giff

the judge said yesterday loughner was a different person.ughner's attorneys that he was competent enough to enter this guilty plea. in a tucson courtroom, a community got some measure of closure. jared loughner entered a guilty plea for the january 2011 shooting spree at an arizona supermarket. six people were killed and 13 injured including former congresswoman gabrielle giffords. a federal judge ruled that loughner was competent to stand trial. allowing him to enter the guilty plea. calling the pain and loss from the shootings incalculable, giffords and mark kelly said avoiding a trial will allow us, and we hope the whole southern arizona community to continue our recovery. another victim from the day agreed. >> i came within a, maybe a couple of inches of losing my life at the safeway. and that -- that kind of experience stays with you. >> reporter: loughner's attorneys had to persuade the federal judge to allow loughner to enter the guilty plea. a psychiatrist who evaluated him testified he showed signs of depression as early as 2006. he

to allow loughner to enter the guilty plea.o evaluated him testified he showed signs of depression as early as 2006. he was diagnosed with schizophrenia. officials have been forcibly medicating him for more than a year. his psychiatrist said the treatment seemed to be helping. loughner told her he was remorseful for his actions especially what he did to 9-year-old christina taylor green killed in the shooting spree. >> there is never closure because -- christina is never going to ring my doorbell again. the wound is always open. there is a hole in the world. >> reporter: prosecutors will not seek the death penalty. loughner will now serve a life sentence in prison. rob, sunny, back to you. >> thank you, karen. and christina became the emotional foe focal point, the little girl. the depth of his mental illness, he was lucid thanks to involuntary meds he did show remorse and cried when he heard what he had done to the little girl. >> this was a very, very sick man. his parents said he had been hearing voices in his head for years

for most of the two-hour hearing, loughner sat calmly by his lawyer's side as his court

the judge after months of medicating loughner to treat his schizophrenia, loughner expressed regret over the shooting. he was especially remorseful over the killing of 9-year-old christina taylor green saying he deserved to be executed, but the psychologist expressed surprise that gabrielle giffords surprised and said that meant he was considered a failure. mark kelly telling the associated press, "we don't speak for all the have. s or their familiars, but -- victims or their families, but gabby and i are satisfied with the plea agreement." with this plea jared loughner avoids the death penalty. he is expected to receive several life sentences, something that won't be handed down until november. >>> investigators are still searching for evidence inside the wisconsin sikh temple where a man opened fire killing psych people. the temple remains -- six people. the temple remains closed as police search for clues explaining why gunman wade michael page targeted that temple. the strongest lead police have right now is page played music in a white supremist rock band. president obama order

before loughner can change his plea, loughner's competency is key here. more about that. >> reporter: you're right about that, kate. it's a two-step process. so the first part of this court appearance will be a competency hearing and in that hearing that the judge is going to determine whether or not jared lee loughner understands the nature of the proceedings, will be able to assist his lawyers should this proceed to a trial. so that's the first part. the competency. now this is entirely separate from the nature of the crime itself, whether he was competent during the actual incident. this is simply to determine whether or not he is competent to stand trial. once a judge rules on that, we are expecting the next part of the hearing. something we are looking for today is what jared lee loughner looks like. remember, throughout this entire time, this year plus, we have seen him appear in court with a shaved head, grinning as the charges were announced. in other appearances, having a loud outburst and ready to be tackled by the guards. we are looking to see

it's also been more than a year since we first saw this haunting grin of jared lee loughner, the man accused in the killing spree. time that the 23-year-old has spent in a federal mental hospital after being found incompetent to stand trial. initially, his court appearance later today was to consider treatment from doctors and psychologists and the use of psycho trophic drugs that made loughner stable enough to understand the murder and attempted murder charges against him. but now there are indications loughner could plead guilty to those charges. >> this way, we almost know he'll be sentenced to life in prison without parole. or an institution without parole. >> reporter: at least one doctor is scheduled to testify, and newly released court documents show the judge in the high profile case will rule on loughner's competency during the hearing. and if he's mentally stable enough to understand the charges, the judge has indicated he will, quoting the court papers now, also consider whether to accept the defendant's proffered pleas. a potential guilty plea that could spare loughner th

this judge has seen jared lee loughner in all sorts of conditions. he is the judge who ordered the medication to be given and the defense did not want that. they were happy to have jared loughner be in the prison hospital indefinitely. but the judge forced the medication and made him competent and meant we could have a resolution to the case. >> so still to try to follow this here, when we use that word "competent" we mean competent now different issue from whether he was competent or sane at the time of the act, correct? >> very, very different. two different time-frames. when we take a look at the time of the act we talk about sanity or insanity. did he understand what he was doing? did he know the consequences of his act? and he might have. but then there is the issue once he is brought to court does he understand the proceedings and the consequences can he participate in his defense? and that is where you have to have the experts come in like they did today and say, you know, with the medication, he is a changed person. he may have schizophrenia

prosecutors want to cut a deal with loughner, a guilty plea in exchange for life in prison. he originally pleaded not guilty. they first have to prove loughner is mentally competent. >>> civil war in syria following the defection of the prime minister, the obama administration says the assad regime is crumbling from within. forces continue to fire on rebel positions in the capital of damascus and syria's largest city, aleppo. manuel gallegus is in washington with more this morning. manny, good morning to you. >> reporter: good morning, terrell. the white house says high-level defections prove that syria's president has lost control of his government, and the u.s. says the rebels seem to be holding their own without american military involvement. smoke filled the air as syrian government forces stepped up their attack on rebel troops in the city of aleppo. the two-week offensive has yet to break the rebels. that's giving some hope that they can eventually win the war and overthrow president bashar assad. >> the momentum is with the opposition and with the syrian people. >> re

loughner responding after each, quote, i plead guilty. and burns accepted the pleas. >> we feel that this is a certain, just, and appropriate resolution of this case. >> reporter: official sentencing legal formality will take place in november. but it's nowhere near the end of the healing process for the victims or this scarred city. >> it's been a difficult day. we -- we remember the six that aren't with us today. and it hurts. >> reporter: a pain, survivors say, that can't be eased by anything that happens in a courtroom. jay gray, nbc news, tucson. >>> last night texas went ahead with a controversial execution of the mentally retarded man. after the u.s. supreme court refused to intervene. 64-year-old marvin wilson was sentenced to death in 1994 for the murder of a police informant. now wilson's lawyers argued he shouldn't have been eligible for the death penalty because of his 61 iq, well below the generally accepted competency standard of 70. a 2002 supreme court ruling banned executing mentally retarded people. but the ruling gave s

but what jared loughner said inside the courthouse today spoke volumes. jared loughner was rushed back to the federal courthouse in tucson today behind the tinted windows of this suv. but this scarred community, the victims and their families, can't hide the pain that lingers more than a year and a half after the attack. >> it's never going to bring closu closure. >> no closure but during a competency and change of plea proceeding, perhaps answers. it began with testimony for from a forensic psychologist who treated loughner since his arrest. she described the 23-year-old as an aggressive yelling psychopath who heard voices and rambled incoherently at times when she first met him. after a year of counseling and treatment with drugs, he "has become human." she described loughner as crying for the victims of the attack, especially the child, that's 9-year-old kristina taylor green. the judge agreed with the doctor's assessment that loughner was competent and quickly moved forward with the plea hearing explaining the charges and outlining the plea agreement,

loughner is due in federal? tucson for a competency hearing. if a judge finds that loughner understands the charges against him a plea deal could move forward tomorrow. alicia acuna is live in the tucson. hi. >> reporter: hi, patti ann. today could come down to how jared loughner handles himself and there are a lot of ifs. the doing nosed schizophrenic has not been in court for more than a year. he has been receiving treatment in a missouri mental hospital since last summer. the expectation is he is ready to enter a guilty plea. however loughner could change his mind or he could act out which could happen in the past. it is up to loughner and the judge. >> when a defendant enters a guilty plea that is going to send him away for life without the possibility of parole, this judge will ask a large amount of questions, many questions i should say, for purposes of making sure this is a voluntary plea. that he knows and understands the consequences of the plea. >> reporter: now this could be a long day. it could be a very short day, patti ann. if the

the judge after months of medicating loughner to treat his schizophrenia, loughner expressed regrethooting. he was especially remorseful over the killing of 9-year-old christina taylor green, saying he deserved to be executed. but psychologist christina pike said loughner also expressed surprise that gabby giffords survived and said that meant he was considered a failure. congresswoman giffords' husband mark kelly telling the "associated press," quote, we don't speak for all the victims or their families, but gabby and i are satisfied with the plea agreement avoiding a trial allowing us and we hope the whole southern arizona community to continue with our recovery and move forward with our lives. >> reporter: with this plea, loughner avoids the death penalty. he is expected to receive several life sentences, something that won't be handed down until november. back to you. >>> there's more exciting news for nasa. we are getting a look at the first color images sent back from the mars rover curiosity just two days after it landed on the red planet. >> sarah is back in studio with the

well loughner now wants to plead guilty at that hearing. that is what they're telling nbc news. >> okay. diana, now you mentioned the prison hospital where he's being treated. what are you hearing about what they are saying? >> well, as far as doctors treating him are prepared to testify that he is mentally competent to offer the plea. >> okay. so does this mean you're saying he's offering the plea. is this an automatic acceptance of that plea then? >> alex, by no means is this a done deal. under federal court rules the judge must be satisfied that a guilty plea is, quote, knowing and voluntary. now, that's going to require the judge to ask loughner a series of questions in open court to make certain he has the capacity to understand what a guilty plea means. including the fact that he gives up all of his appeal rights. >> okay. so, diana, how long does he serve if a plea, saying you're guilty, is accepted? >> a federal officials says any agreement to accept the plea would require loughner to serve a sentence of life in prison. now, instead

loughner would plead guilty and avoid the death penalty.al has been delayed before because loughner was ruled mentally unfit, not competent to stand trial. a judge will take another look at this issue. if he still thinks that loughner is incompetent, well, all bets are off on a plea deal. joining us doug burns, a former prosecutor, who has, you have handled hundreds of guilty pleas in federal courts. you're a pro at this. >> thank you. gregg: what is at stake here on competency? >> yeah, it is interesting because it is two completely different principles so let's sort them out. today what happens is they go into court and under rule 11 under guilty pleas the judge has to be sure the department is competent to enter a plea. do you understand what is going on this morning? do you understand the nature of in this charging instrument. gregg: can you assist with your lawyers? have you interacted with your lawyers? have you satisfied withassistan? have you gone through the plea agreement? do you understand its terms? use a little algebra. if norm

we're used to seeing loughner's picture we just showed on the screen.terday. how did he look to you? >> reporter: he looked very different. at least his demeanor was very different. when he first came into the courtroom for the hearing, he did look out at the public galley. he had a bit of an unusual look on his face. he had a bit of a sneer as he was looking out at everyone. but overall his demeanor was very calm. it's important to point out, because of all that medication that you just heard the u.s. attorney talking about, zoraida, he is heavily medicated. at

evidence, she conclude that loughner was capable of understanding what he is accused of and competent to stand trial. >> the judge agreed and moved forward with a hearing to consider a plea agreement. prosecutors waving the death penalty in exchange for a guilty plea and life in prison without possibility of parole. the judge describes the day that six were killed and 13 injured and referred to all the victims by name. loughner responding after each i plead guilty and burns accepted the pleas. >> we feel this is a certain, just and appropriate resolution of this case. >> been a difficult day. we remember the six that aren't with us today. and it hurts. >> reporter: a pain survivors say that can't be eased by anything that happens in a courtroom. jay gray, nbc news, tucson. >>> a copy cat or just coincidence? tonight an explanation from an ohio man who was arrested for bringing several knives, guns and ammo to a screening of the bat man on saturday. he said he used it for protection. he felt a sense of fear about going to the movies and chose the dark knight rises by coincidence. >>> d

jared loughner killed six, wounded 13, including congresswoman gabby giffords., he pled guilty. that means he won't get the death penalty but will go to prison for life. gabby giffords is weighing in on the decision, and we are learning for the first time how loughner wept for one of his victims and wanted to be executed. abc's dan harris leads us off. >> reporter: we all remember that disturbing mug shot, that twisted grin, the beaming eyes and the youtube video, the burning of the american flag and that rambling tour of the college from which jared lee loughner dropped out.

and hours ago jared lee loughner stood before a judge to enter his plea. in one of the largest oil refiners in the nation. >> i thought we got bombed. >> shepard: the flames sending choking black smoke other several cities. investigators say a man left behind his belongings to try to fake his own drowning death. >> the man who got fired got desperate, perhaps. >> and today, his son was in court accused of helping dad commit fraud. but first from fox this tuesday night. the tucson supermarket shooter pleaded guilty today. jared loughner killed six people in that attack and wounded a dozen others including gabriel giffords. the plea part of a deal with prosecutors. it means he will not die for his crimes. but will never again be a free man. >> pursuant to the plea agreement entered today, mr. loughner will spend the remainder of his natural life in prison with no possibility of parole. suffered from schizophrenia and they have been treating him for more than a year now. officers determined is he better now mentally competent that judge also asked loughner sp

>>reporter: the doctor is on the stand now, loughner's court-appointed psychiatrist.going into detail about his life and his departure from mental clarity explaining it began when he was 16 and as time passed his parents were concerned because he was hearing things. his fronds thought he was suicidal and something was off because the conversations did not make sense. the doctor said when he was restored through treatment and drugs he started to express