The US military will livestream the firing-squad execution of Nidal Hasan, the former Army psychiatrist convicted of the 2009 Fort Hood shooting that killed 13 people and wounded 32, a Pentagon official confirmed on October 8. The execution is scheduled for December 3 at Fort Hood, Texas — and would be the first US military execution since 1961 and the first by firing squad since World War II.
Unprecedented and controversial
"It will be livestreamed. Details will follow," the Pentagon official told AFP on condition of anonymity, a day after Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth said in an interview aboard the USS Abraham Lincoln that the execution would be carried out "in public." Hegseth, who recommended the firing squad, later confirmed the livestream plan on X, replying "correct" to a CBS News report. "We'll make sure that people are able to watch it, that it's public, because people need to understand that there's serious consequences for these types of things," he told influencer Jack Posobiec.
Acting Secretary of the Army Adam Telle set the execution for 1 p.m. local time on December 3. President Donald Trump approved the death sentence on October 2 after the military appellate process concluded. The plan has drawn backlash from both sides of the aisle, CNN reported, and legal experts have questioned its feasibility. The Death Penalty Information Center said it could find no record of any government ever livestreaming an execution, and its executive director suggested the plan "may be more aspirational than based in reality," noting there is currently no regulation or precedent for it. Military law experts also noted that Hasan could still seek review in a civilian court, which could delay the execution.
A case nearly 17 years old
Hasan, an Army psychiatrist, was convicted in 2013 of 13 counts of premeditated murder and 32 counts of attempted murder over the November 2009 shooting at Fort Hood. The last US military execution was carried out in 1961, when John Bennett was hanged; the military's last firing-squad execution was that of Eddie Slovik in 1945.
Sources:
CNN: Pentagon plans public livestream of its first firing squad execution in decades
USA Today: Public will be able to watch Fort Hood shooter's execution, Hegseth says
The Straits Times: US military firing squad execution to be livestreamed
Unprecedented and controversial
"It will be livestreamed. Details will follow," the Pentagon official told AFP on condition of anonymity, a day after Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth said in an interview aboard the USS Abraham Lincoln that the execution would be carried out "in public." Hegseth, who recommended the firing squad, later confirmed the livestream plan on X, replying "correct" to a CBS News report. "We'll make sure that people are able to watch it, that it's public, because people need to understand that there's serious consequences for these types of things," he told influencer Jack Posobiec.
Acting Secretary of the Army Adam Telle set the execution for 1 p.m. local time on December 3. President Donald Trump approved the death sentence on October 2 after the military appellate process concluded. The plan has drawn backlash from both sides of the aisle, CNN reported, and legal experts have questioned its feasibility. The Death Penalty Information Center said it could find no record of any government ever livestreaming an execution, and its executive director suggested the plan "may be more aspirational than based in reality," noting there is currently no regulation or precedent for it. Military law experts also noted that Hasan could still seek review in a civilian court, which could delay the execution.
A case nearly 17 years old
Hasan, an Army psychiatrist, was convicted in 2013 of 13 counts of premeditated murder and 32 counts of attempted murder over the November 2009 shooting at Fort Hood. The last US military execution was carried out in 1961, when John Bennett was hanged; the military's last firing-squad execution was that of Eddie Slovik in 1945.
Sources:
CNN: Pentagon plans public livestream of its first firing squad execution in decades
USA Today: Public will be able to watch Fort Hood shooter's execution, Hegseth says
The Straits Times: US military firing squad execution to be livestreamed
