Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords shot in the head in Tucson *CRITICAL*.
At least 12 other people, including members of her staff, were reportedly hurt when a gunman ran up to the meeting and opened fire.
Miss Giffords, 40, was shot in the head during a public event outside a grocery store in Tucson, Arizona.
An hour before her shooting, she wrote on Twitter: "My 1st Congress on Your Corner starts now. Please stop by to let me know what is on your mind or tweet me later."
<span style="font-style: italic">A congresswoman from Arizona was shot point blank in the head and killed on Saturday in a shooting at a public event at a grocery store in Tucson, according to her spokesman, C. J. Karamargin, and news reports. Twelve others were injured in the shooting.
She was taken to University Medical Center in Tucson, the trauma center for the area, about 10 miles away, but NPR and CNN reported that she had been killed.
CNN quoted a public information officer for the sheriff’s office as saying that 12 people had been injured in all and that the shooting had occurred around 10 a.m. local time.
An employee at a nearby store told CNN that he heard a steady stream of gun fire that appeared sustained “random.” Shortly after, emergency vehicles filled the parking lot around the grocery story and cordoned off the area.
The shooting occurred at a Safeway supermarket in northwest Tucson as Ms. Giffords hosted an event, called “Congress on Your Corner, to allow members of the 8th Congressional District to meet her individually. She has held several events since first taking office in January 2007. At one such event in 2009, a protester was removed by police when his pistol fell on the supermarket floor.
Last March, her Tucson office was vandalized a few hours after the House vote overhauling the nation’s health care system, the authorities said. Earlier events in Tucson, Oro Valley, Green Valley, Sierra Vista, and Douglas had attracted between 75 and 150 people, according to a statement announcing the event. This was her first event since her re-election to a third term in November.
Ms. Giffords, 40, was interviewed on Fox news on Friday to talk about a bill to cut to congressional salaries by 5 percent.</span>
At least 12 other people, including members of her staff, were reportedly hurt when a gunman ran up to the meeting and opened fire.
Miss Giffords, 40, was shot in the head during a public event outside a grocery store in Tucson, Arizona.
An hour before her shooting, she wrote on Twitter: "My 1st Congress on Your Corner starts now. Please stop by to let me know what is on your mind or tweet me later."
<span style="font-style: italic">A congresswoman from Arizona was shot point blank in the head and killed on Saturday in a shooting at a public event at a grocery store in Tucson, according to her spokesman, C. J. Karamargin, and news reports. Twelve others were injured in the shooting.
She was taken to University Medical Center in Tucson, the trauma center for the area, about 10 miles away, but NPR and CNN reported that she had been killed.
CNN quoted a public information officer for the sheriff’s office as saying that 12 people had been injured in all and that the shooting had occurred around 10 a.m. local time.
An employee at a nearby store told CNN that he heard a steady stream of gun fire that appeared sustained “random.” Shortly after, emergency vehicles filled the parking lot around the grocery story and cordoned off the area.
The shooting occurred at a Safeway supermarket in northwest Tucson as Ms. Giffords hosted an event, called “Congress on Your Corner, to allow members of the 8th Congressional District to meet her individually. She has held several events since first taking office in January 2007. At one such event in 2009, a protester was removed by police when his pistol fell on the supermarket floor.
Last March, her Tucson office was vandalized a few hours after the House vote overhauling the nation’s health care system, the authorities said. Earlier events in Tucson, Oro Valley, Green Valley, Sierra Vista, and Douglas had attracted between 75 and 150 people, according to a statement announcing the event. This was her first event since her re-election to a third term in November.
Ms. Giffords, 40, was interviewed on Fox news on Friday to talk about a bill to cut to congressional salaries by 5 percent.</span>
