Loughner's lawyers want notice if he is drugged

TUCSON, Ariz. – Lawyers for the man charged in the deadly Tucson shooting rampage want federal officials to notify them if they plan to give their client psychotropic medication.

A federal judge in Tucson ruled last week that 22-year-old Jared Lee Loughner is mentally unfit to assist his lawyers or understand the charges he faces. He was sent Friday to a federal prison facility in Springfield, Mo., for treatment.

Defense attorney Judy Clarke filed the motion late last week.

Mental health experts who examined Loughner concluded he suffers from schizophrenia. Prosecutor Wallace Kleindienst said doctors will seek to medicate him to see if he improves.

Loughner has pleaded not guilty to federal charges stemming from the Jan. 8 shooting that killed six people, and wounded Rep. Gabrielle Giffords and 12 others.