Quote:Dr Oz did a segment called "Tragedy in Tucson: A Dr Oz Special Report." I am surprised at the topic because Doctor Oz's shows are usually taped well in advance clearly, this show was taped in the last 2-3 days since Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords' tragic shooting last Saturday.

Dr Oz showed on a model exactly what happened. The bullet hit Gifford in the back of her head and went through the parts of the brain responsible for vision, speech, sensory functions, motor skills, and decision making. The bullet then exited her head right over her left eye.

Quote:Dr. G. Michael Lemole Jr., the chief of neurosurgery, who operated on Ms. Giffords, said the bullet traveled through the left side of her brain "from back to front." It did not cross from one side of the brain to the other, he said, nor did it pass through some critical areas that would further diminish her chances of recovery.

Quote:Daniel Hernandez had been U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords' intern for five days when she was shot Saturday outside Tucson.

The junior at the University of Arizona was helping check people in at the "Congress on Your Corner" event when he heard gunfire. He was about 30 feet from the congresswoman. When the shots began, he ran toward them.
Then he saw Giffords. She had fallen and was lying contorted on the sidewalk. She was bleeding.

Using his hand, Hernandez applied pressure to the entry wound on her forehead. He pulled her into his lap, holding her upright against him so she wouldn't choke on her own blood. Giffords was conscious, but quiet.

Ron Barber, Giffords' district director, was next to her. Hernandez told a bystander how to apply pressure to one of Barber's wounds.

Barber told Hernandez, "Make sure you stay with Gabby. Make sure you help Gabby."

Hernandez used his hand to apply pressure until someone from inside Safeway brought him clean smocks from the meat department. He used them to apply pressure on the entrance wound, unaware there was an exit wound. He never let go of her.

He stayed with Giffords until paramedics arrived. They strapped her to a board and loaded her into an ambulance. Hernandez climbed in with her. On the ride to the hospital, he held her hand. She squeezed his back.

When they arrived at the hospital, Hernandez was soaked in blood. His family brought him clean clothes because the FBI took his for evidence.

He waited at the hospital while she went into surgery. He needed to tell police what had happened. He overheard people walking by talking about how Giffords had died. He also heard this on NPR. Later, he learned she had lived.

"I was ecstatic," he said. "She was one of the people I've looked up to. Knowing she was alive and still fighting was good news. She's definitely a fighter, whether for her own life, or standing up for people in southern Arizona."

The fact that Hernandez was nearby and able to react quickly probably saved Giffords' life, said state Rep. Matt Heinz, D-Tucson, and a hospital physician. He talked to Hernandez at the hospital after the shooting.

Eight hours after the shooting, Hernandez stood with Giffords' friends and staff and told them what had happened. The tall, strong 20-year-old said, "Of course you're afraid, you just kind of have to do what you can."

Quote:From today's NYT, I see that store surveillance video exists of the Arizona shootings:

Quote:The chief investigator for the sheriff's department here has for the first time publicly described the brief and gory video clip from a store security camera that shows a gunman not only shooting Representative Gabrielle Giffords just above the eyebrow at a range of three feet, but then using his 9-millimeter pistol to gun down others near her at a similarly close range ...

... The crucial video showing the shooting of Ms. Giffords, Judge Roll and Mr. Barber lasts only about five seconds before the gunman steps out of the frame.

At the start of the clip, it shows the "suspect coming from just outside of the frame of the video toward the parking lot," Mr. Kastigar said. "He goes around a table set up for part of that gathering and walks up to Gabby and shoots her directly in the forehead." It was not clear from this video, he said, if Ms. Giffords realized what was happening.

The gunman "then turns to his left and indiscriminately shoots at people sitting in chairs along the wall," he said. The video does not show those people being shot, he said. But quickly the gunman is back in the video, which shows him turning to his right and shooting Mr. Barber, who had been with Judge Roll "standing side by side with the table to their backs."

Should it be shown publicly? It's morbid, yes. There are the families to think about. Obviously, their consent would have to be secured. But maybe people should see what this kind of thing actually looks like in real life. Might have a salutary impact.

Poll: Should the Arizona shooting video be shown?

http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/michaeltomasky/2011/jan/19/arizona-shooting-video-question

Ed Jewett Wrote:Be aware and alert for indications that these tapes were "tweaked" by authorities before release. While I have not done a precise reconstruction in any sense, it seems that there are some discrepancies with regard to the Judge, from where he was shot, when, etc. I have no answers, just questions.

Quote:There is a debate going on in the caliber forum right now about whether it is more effective in stopping someone if the bullet goes all the way through or stops in the body. The "exiter proponents", as I call them, think that the exit wound will be massive and will cause bleed out faster.

Paul Rigby Wrote:"His family brought him clean clothes because the FBI took his for evidence."

Quote:On cloth targets, soot was more visible in the case of the TT up to firing distance of 50 cm and there were faint soot flecks on some synthetic cloths even at a distance of 75 cm. In the case of the PM and the Glock, the soot was seen on some synthetic cloths at a distance of 50 cm. The gunpowder particles were dispersed over the targets (TT and PM) or concentrated mostly around the bullet entrance hole (Glock 19). Up to a distance of 75 cm, the Glock 19 left the greatest and the PM the smallest number of gunpowder particles. At a distance of 100 cm, there were only some gunpowder particles on the cloths.