Jared Lee Loughner has pleaded guilty to going on a rampage in Tucson that left six dead and wounded then-Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords and 12 others.
Loughner's plea Tuesday allows him to avoid the death penalty in a mass shooting that gained worldwide attention in January 2011 because his intended target was the congresswoman. Among the dead were Arizona's chief federal judge and a Giffords' aide.
Federal Judge Larry A. Burns had found that Loughner was mentally unfit to stand trial. He ruled on Tuesday that months of forcibly medicating him to treat his schizophrenia made him competent to understand the gravity of the charges against him and assist in his own defense.
The psychiatrist said Loughner told a doctor he was remorseful for what he did. She said Loughner told his doctor, "I especially cry about the child" - apparently referring to nine-year-old victim Christina Taylor Green, who was killed in the attack.
Loughner is expected to be sentenced to life in prison without parole.
Survivors of the shooting came to court, but Giffords was not among them. Her husband, former astronaut Mark Kelly said he and his wife are satisfied with Loughner's plea agreement, and that avoiding a trial would help them and the rest of the community continue to recover from the attack.
(AP, CBS News)
