Readers in New Jersey who have followed the story of Arizona Rep. Gabrielle Giffords as she recovers from a brain injury she sustained in a Jan. 8, 2011 assassination attempt may be interested to learn that Giffords has decided to resign from Congress. As Giffords prepared to leave her seat to focus on her rehabilitation, she vowed in an online message that "I will return & we will work together for Arizona," suggesting that she does not expect her injury will end her political career.

We have discussed the attack that led to Giffords' injury several times in this blog, most recently on Nov. 15. Giffords was conducting a public event at a grocery store in Tucson when a man entered the store with a gun and opened fire. Six people were killed and 13 more were injured, including Giffords, who was shot in the head.

Giffords spent the next year recovering from her injuries, which initially left her unable to speak. She has recovered to the point where she was able to announce her resignation in a video message posted online, in clear but halting speech. She told her constituents that she was doing what was best for her state. She later released a Twitter message vowing "I will return."

Before she officially leaves office, Giffords planned to vote on a bill she co-sponsored that would increase penalties for drug smugglers who use ultra-light airplanes to avoid radar detection. That bill was scheduled for a vote in the House of Representatives Jan. 25. Among her other final activities as a congresswoman was a visit with other survivors of the Tucson attack and an appearance at a local food shelf.

Source: Chicago Sun-Times, "Gabrielle Giffords bids farewell but promises to return," Amanda Lee Myers, Jan. 24, 2012