It's been a year since the tragic Tucson shooting which left six people dead and Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords fighting for her life.

Her struggle to recover from the gunshot wound to her head has been a source of inspiration, and Sunday she and the local community are coming together to pay tribute to those who were injured or lost their lives 12 months ago.

On January 8, 2011 college dropout Jared L. Loughner fired 31 rounds at innocent citizens who had gathered for a congressional outreach event outside a supermarket.

PHOTOS: First Pictures Of Gabby Giffords Since Shooting

More than 30 memorial events are scheduled across the Tucson area, including a candlelight vigil at the University of Arizona. Giffords and her husband, retired astronaut Mark Kelly, are attending several.

Loughner was declared mentally incompetent to stand trial and is currently consigned to treatment at a US federal prison hospital in Springfield, Missouri.

PHOTOS: Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords With Her Family

The courts and his defense team are still fighting over whether he can be forced to take anti-psychotic drugs, and if he'll stand trial if eventually deemed mentally competent.

Giffords has spent the last year learning how to walk and talk again and is currently deciding whether she will seek re-election.

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Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords took a day off from her rehabilitation therapy to help serve Thanksgiving dinner to service members and retirees at a base in her hometown of Tucson.

Giffords and her former astronaut husband Mark Kelly dished out hundreds of meals at the Davis-Monthan Air Force Base Thursday.

She wore a baseball cap and an apron with her nickname of "Gabby" sewn on the front.

Giffords used only her left hand as she served. Her right side is still impaired because of the brain injury she suffered when she was shot in the head  in January.  But nothing could get in the way of her enthusiasm for the event, and she never stopped smiling.

"She's such an inspiration and her story is so inspirational, it really made me proud, Airman 1st Class Millie Gray told AP. "I felt very proud and very humble."

Another legal fight is brewing in the case of alleged Arizona shooter Jared Lee Loughner who is accused of killing six people and the attempted assignation of Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords and it’s all over the release of his Federal mug shots, RadarOnline.com has exclusively learned.

In court documents filed with the United States District Court, District of Arizona, the U.S. Attorney's Office, as well as Loughner's attorney Judy Clarke oppose the release of Loughner’s Federal mug shots despite over one dozen requests by the media to do so citing the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA).

EXCLUSIVE COURT DOCUMENTS: Jared Loughner Motions To Bar Release of Mugshots

In January, the Pima County Sheriff's Department released one booking photo of Loughner to the public, taken while he was in their custody – depicting Loughner with a shaved head and an eerie grin on his face.

But Loughner was later turned over to the United States Marshals, where two additional booking photos were taken of him – one profile shot and one front shot.

PHOTOS: The Six People Killed In The Tucson Shootings

According to court documents, these photos “show Mr. Loughner in sharper resolution with abrasions on his face, and in prison garb, with a cinder block wall in the background.”

Officially, it is standard practice for the U.S. Marshals Service to refrain from releasing booking photos, but because of a legal loophole, they are seeking a judge's order prohibiting those photos from being made public.

PHOTOS: Gabrielle Giffords With Her Husband & Friends

But thanks to a previous ruling by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 6th Circuit in a case brought by the Detroit Free Press vs. Department of Justice –  the ruling in that case may provide the loophole they need. The court ruled mug shots had to be released when there is no privacy interest at stake.

Currently, there are 15 media outlets requesting the mug shots - four of those outlets fall within the 6th Circuit's jurisdiction, making the release of those mug shots a possibility.

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Despite the ongoing hurdles surrounding this case, the United States Attorney's Office and Judy Clarke, Loughner’s attorney, agree on one thing – they don't want the mug shots released to the public and they want them to remain under seal.

In a motion objecting a release of the mug shot, Loughner’s attorney states, "first, a mug shot is associated with guilt, an association which prevails regardless of the outcome of the case....Second, a mug shot is humiliating. It captures an individual usually unflattering expression at a humiliating moment. Third, a mug shot has a long-term stigmatizing effect. The effect remains even after a sentence has been served."

PHOTOS: Jared Lee Loughner Is The Suspected Shooter

Loughner's attorney goes on to say that releasing the mug shot could prevent her client from getting a fair trial and could garner more media attention.

A hearing is scheduled on February 18th to determine if the mug shot should be released.

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Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords’ husband spoke out for the first time since his wife was shot in the Arizona massacre, expressing empathy for the shooters parents, RadarOnline.com has learned.

PHOTOS: Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords With Her Husband & Family

“You know, I don’t think it’s their fault,” Gifford’s husband, Mark Kelly, told Diane Sawyer during an interview with ABC News.

“I’d like to think I’m a person that’s…somewhat forgiving…they’ve got to be hurting in this situation…as much as anybody.

“And they must, I’m sure they love their son…they must be, you know, as distraught over this as we are.”

Jared Lee Lougner walked around his Pima Community College campus last September with a video camera and a personality that was losing all touch with reality," RadarOnline.com has learned.

The accused shooter in last week's Tucson, Arizona rampage narrated his tour of the school, and it is as frightening as it is eerie.

PHOTOS:  The Six Victims In Tucson Shooting

He posted it on YouTube, and once school officials became aware of the video, they immediately suspended Loughner.

You can see it here on RadarOnline.com.

In between taping the exterior of buildings, the door to the campus police office and some passersby, Loughner comments that "I'm in a terrible place."

He accuses Pima Community College of being a "genocide" school and stifling free speech.

PHOTOS:  Jared Lee Loughner Is The Suspected Tucson Gunman

"All the teachers that you have are being paid illegally and have illegal authority over the Constitution of the United States under the 1st Amendment," he says.  "This is genocide in America.  Thank you.  This is Jared from Pima College."

School officials released the video Saturday.

Loughner stands accused of murder, attempted murder, and the attempted assassination of a member of Congress.  His primary target was Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords, who was shot in the head but is defying the odds with her survival.

Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords With Her Husband & Family

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The family of Jared Lee Loughner has not been seen publicly since their son allegedly opened fire at a political event outside a grocery story on Saturday morning that wounded 14 people and took the lives of six others, but in a statement released Tuesday, they expressed their sorrow for the victims.

“This is a very difficult time for us.  We ask the media to respect our privacy. There are no words that can possibly express how we feel.  We wish that there were, so that we could make you feel better.  We don’t understand why this happened. It may not make any difference, but we wish that we could change the heinous events of Saturday.  We care very deeply about the victims and their families. We are so very sorry for their loss. Thank you.”

PHOTOS: The Six Arizona Shooting Victims

The statement was handed to the media waiting outside the Loughner’s home in Tucson, Arizona. As RadarOnline.com previously reported, the FBI were initially denied access to the home Tuesday but eventually went inside to speak with the family.

Police have just released this mugshot to RadarOnline.com... showing Arizona shooting suspect Jared Lee Loughner smirking just moments after he was taken into custody.

The alleged murderer is accused of gunning down 20 people - including Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords - in a supermarket parking lot this weekend.

PHOTOS: The Six People Killed In The Arizona Shooting

And this disturbing mugshot, taken shortly after police stopped his rampage, will leave the American public with chills.

With his shaved head, crazy looking eyes and smug grin, Loughner looks like a mad man.

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Arizona shooter Jared Loughner had an "evil smile on his face like The Joker from Batman", his college math teacher told RadarOnline.com in an exclusive new interview Monday.

Ben McGahee -- who taught Loughner at Pima Community College last summer -- believed that the 22-year-old was high on drugs in his class and represented a threat to his other students.

McGahee was so alarmed about Loughner's behavior that he alerted the college Dean and counselors when he discovered that Loughner had scribbled the words ‘Mayhem Fest’ on one of his math tests.

The man accused of killing six people and wounding 14 others, including Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords, appeared in a Phoenix federal courtroom on Monday where he answered questions and a judge set a future court date.

With his head shaved, Jared Lee Loughner entered the Arizona courtroom in shackles and wearing a tan prison uniform, CNN reported.  His eyes were "darting back and forth," but he spoke in a "strong voice" when questioned by the judge.

PHOTOS: The Six People Killed In The Arizona Shooting

When the proceedings began, the judge asked him if he was Jared Lee Loughner and he replied "Yes, I am Jared Lee Loughner."

Loughner's family was not present in the courtroom.

Bristol Palin and her son Tripp have moved into their new house in Maricopa, Arizona, RadarOnline.com can exclusively reveal.

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With some calling it the house Dancing With The Stars bought, Bristol took title to the five bedroom, 4,000 sq. ft. home for $172,000.  She paid cash for the house that had sold for almost twice that much just three years earlier.

And before her bags are even unpacked, Bristol has her first job offer. Phoenix radio station Mix 96.9 has offered Sarah Palin's daughter the opportunity to be the sidekick for morning show host Mathew Blades.

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"I think Bristol's outlook on life is probably different than mine, and that contrast could be interesting to listen to," Blades said.

Bristol could certainly make for controversial radio, especially in light of the mass shooting that took place 100 miles away from her new home in Tucson.

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As RadarOnline.com has been reporting, Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords and 19 others were shot Saturday.  Six died in the rampage.  Giffords had been one of the Representatives listed on Sarah Palin's highly controversial 'crosshairs" map, targeting Congressional candidates the former Alaska governor wanted defeated in the mid-term elections.

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What is reportedly the final episode of Sarah Palin's Alaska airs tonight on TLC.

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