Loughner pleads 'not guilty' of shooting US Senator Giffords

Tucson (Arizona), Mar.10 (ANI): Jared Loughner, who is accused of attempting to assassinate US congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords, and killing six people in Tucson including a federal judge, has pleaded not guilty to 49 new charges filed against him.

Giffords (40) had been shot in the head at point-blank range and is undergoing a course of intensive rehabilitation at Memorial Hermann Rehabilitation hospital in Houston.

Loughner faces charges related to the killing of a federal employee, use of a firearm to commit a violent crime, cause injury or death, and injuring or causing death to participants at a federally protected activity.

He quietly sat through the hour long hearing and hardly reacted as 49 counts including multiple murder charges were read to him, followed by arguments seeking public access to records in the case.

The courtroom was packed with observers, who were either the shooting victims with their family members, or relatives of those who lost their lives in the incident.

The hearing also discussed Loughner's mental competence to stand trial, and judge Burns ordered psychological tests to be carried out to determine if he was able to understand the charges against him, The Sydney Morning Herald reports.

US Attorney Dennis Burke said: "If convicted, Loughner could face the death penalty over the shootings," adding that US judicial rules required them to pursue a deliberate and thorough process. (ANI)