Jared Lee Loughner's long term prison home unclear

Court illustration of Jared Lee Loughner on Tuesday, Aug. 7, 2012. / CBS/Robles

(AP) TUCSON, Ariz. - With life behind bars now a certainty for Jared Lee Loughner, federal prison officials will have to determine just where to put him.

The 23-year-old college dropout who went on a deadly shooting rampage at an Arizona political gathering in January 2011 could end up back in a prison medical facility like the one in Springfield, Mo., where he's been treated for schizophrenia for more than a year.

Or he could end up in a prison such as the federal "Supermax" lockup in Florence, Colo., which houses some of the country's most notorious criminals, including Oklahoma City bombing conspirator Terry Nichols and "Unabomber" Ted Kaczynski.

Federal Bureau of Prisons spokesman Chris Burke said Wednesday that placement will be determined after Loughner is sentenced for the January 2011 shooting that killed six and wounded 13, including then-Rep. Gabrielle Giffords. The exact placement will depend on the nature of his mental illness and what's required to treat him.

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All federal facilities can treat some level of mental illness, with more severe cases sent to special facilities. Mental health problems are rampant in the nation's jails and prisons, with more than half of all inmates exhibiting some illness, according to a 2006 Department of Justice report. In federal prisons, 45 percent had mental health issues.

Loughner looked relaxed and attentive in a packed Tucson courtroom Tuesday as he pleaded guilty to the shooting rampage as part of an agreement with prosecutors that will send him to prison for life and spare him a possible death sentence.

He even cracked a smile when a court-appointed psychologist talked about the special bond that he formed with a prison guard.

Loughner was not the man who rocked back and forth in court in May 2011 before blurting out, "Thank you for the free kill. She died in front of me. Your cheesiness." The changes in his behavior led a judge to declare Loughner competent.

Victims and federal prosecutors praised the agreement, saying it brought some measure of justice. They said it spares victims and their families from having to go through a potentially lengthy and traumatic trial and appeal.

As part of the agreement, Loughner will be ineligible for parole.

His sentencing is set for Nov. 15. In the meantime, U.S. District Court Judge Larry Burns on Wednesday ordered Loughner returned to Springfield for continued treatment.

[matt6052]

Neither Terry nor Ted is insane like Loughner. Remember, Loughner had to be heavily medicated before he could enter a guilty plea and was only able to create online videos. Ted put together dozens of bombs and wrote a manifesto. Terry helped construct a huge ANFO bomb.

Everyone agreed that Loughner was sane enough to understand the charges against him. The only person who attested to Loughner's sanity at the time of the shooting was Loughner himself. By saying "guilty" he was claiming he was sane when he shot Giffords and many others. But he has zero knowledge, training, or experience in determining a person's sanity, and lunatics always say they're sane.

Still, in a case where a congressional representative was shot and a federal judge killed, the judge accepted the testimony of an insane man without medical credentials that the defendant was sane at the time of the shooting.

Loughner's correct course would be more like John Hinckley's -- about 30 years in a mental institution.

[EZKube]

Shame on this country for putting people who committed a crime while severely mentally ill into prison, as if they are the same as criminals with no mental illness. What's next? Putting people into prison because they have other illnesses, like cancer? Loughner was a kid who was showing signs of severe paranoid schizophrenia, and no one helped him until it was too late.

[askagain]

Shame on this country for wasting our resources on these people. We would be better off eliminating these people permanently. Not only are they a drain on our resources, they will never contribute anything positive to our society as they rot in prison at taxpayer expense. But we are good at wasting resources.

[baileycccc]

Please CBS, no more news on this scum bag.

[EZKube]

He's not a scumbag. He's ill. Everyone in this case deserves compassion. The victims, the families, and Loughner.