Nidal Hasan sentenced to death by military jury for Fort Hood shooting that killed 13

FORT HOOD, Texas (AP) — A military jury has sentenced Maj. Nidal Hasan to death for killing 13 people during the 2009 shooting rampage at Fort Hood.

Hasan never denied being the gunman and has said the attack on unarmed soldiers was motivated by a desire to protect Muslim insurgents fighting in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Because he did not dispute the allegations, the trial has been primarily a pursuit of the death penalty.

The same jury that sentenced him to death Wednesday also found him guilty last week in the attack, which also wounded more than 30 people at the Texas military base.

Military prosecutors believed that any sentence short of death would deny.

Before an execution date is set, the sentence will face years, if not decades, of appeals.

THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. Check back soon for further information. AP’s earlier story is below.

The Army psychiatrist who fatally shot 13 people at Fort Hood will “never be a martyr” and deserves to be executed despite his attempt to tie his attack on unarmed soldiers to religion, a prosecutor told jurors on Wednesday.

Via: Washington Times

Continue Reading....

Fort Hood Victim’s Widow: Killer ‘Is Not Going to Win’

FORT HOOD, Texas (Reuters) – The widow of a worker slain in the 2009 shooting rampage at Fort Hood, Texas, vowed not to let the killing by convicted gunman U.S. Army Major Nidal Hasan destroy her life and testified in a sentencing hearing on Tuesday that “he is not going to win.”

“The shooting is not going to destroy my life or my children’s. He is not going to win. I am in control,” said Joleen Cahill, whose husband, retired Chief Warrant Officer Michael Cahill, was one of 13 people murdered by Hasan at the central Texas military base.

Cahill testified at the sentencing phase for Hasan, an army psychiatrist who was convicted of 45 counts of premeditated murder and attempted premeditated murder.

Hasan could be sentenced to death by the military jury of 13 officers, who convicted him on Friday and are now weighing his punishment.

He killed 13 people and wounded 31 others, most of them unarmed soldiers.

It was the deadliest mass murder ever at a U.S. military base.

Twenty family members and shooting victims gave testimony during the sentencing phase, which began on Monday, recounting heart-wrenching stories of loss, grief and wounds.

Prosecutors rested their case at midday on Tuesday.

Following a lunch recess, Hasan will have the opportunity to address the jury deciding his fate. The Army psychiatrist has been acting as his own attorney.

Via: WFB

Continue Reading....

Ford Hood shooter convicted on all counts

Fort Hood shooter Nidal Hasan was found guilty on all 13 counts of premeditated murder and 32 counts of attempted premeditated murder Friday, making him eligible for the death penalty.

The sentencing phase of his trial was set to begin Monday.

A military jury deliberated for roughly one day before announcing the verdict.

Hasan sat emotionless, stroking his beard when the judge announced a verdict had been reached. He stood and looked at the juror panel president when the verdict was read, then turned and looked back down.

A few family members of the victims cried and hugged each other at the announcement, but there were no courtroom outbursts.

Hasan was charged with 13 counts of pre-meditated murder and 32 counts of attempted pre-meditated murder in the Nov. 2009 shooting attack at the sprawling Texas military base.

Hasan, an Army psychiatrist, had acted as his own attorney at the 13-day trial, but questioned only three of nearly 90 witnesses and presented only a single piece of evidence in his defense: an evaluation from his boss that called him a good soldier. He also chose not to make a closing statement.

Via: Fox News

Continue Reading....