The execution date of former Army Major Nidal Hasan, who killed 13 people in the 2009 Fort Hood shooting, has been set for Dec. 3, 2026, and will be carried out at the same location where he carried out the attack, according to an email sent to the victims’ families.
Hassan is set to die by firing squad It would be the first military execution since 1961.
Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell said late Monday that the plan to use Army firing squads was recommended by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and approved by President Trump.
“Hassan’s day of judgment has finally arrived,” Parnell wrote.
CBS Texas has reached out to Fort Hood for comment and referred it to Army headquarters.
On November 5, 2009, in addition to the 13 people killed by Hassan, 32 others were injured. The targets were unarmed soldiers preparing for deployment at a readiness center. Hassan fired 146 shots.
The last military execution occurred 65 years ago, when the Army executed Pvt. John Bennett was sentenced to hang for the rape and attempted murder of an 11-year-old girl.
The last execution by firing squad occurred during World War II when Pvt. Eddie Slovik was executed in France for desertion.
Hassan, 56, was an Army psychiatrist at the time of the shooting. He served in the Army for twenty years. Witnesses said Hassan shouted “Allahu Akbar” before shooting. When police returned fire, Hassan was paralyzed from the chest down.
Since his conviction, Hassan has been on death row at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas.
What is a firing squad?
Under Army Regulation 190-55, military executions can only be authorized by the President. The 2019 revision removed the term “lethal injection” from the statute and left the specific method to be specified by the Secretary of the Army. According to the guidelines, this approach is recommended by the Provost Marshal to the Secretary.
According to the order, the prisoner is personally informed of the President’s decision by the commander, who is accompanied by a chaplain and, if available, a defense attorney. After notification, the prisoner becomes a “death row”.
victim
The family of the deceased was notified before the execution was announced. They, along with the survivors, were asked if they wanted to participate. The group, bonded by tragedy, has been intertwined for the past 17 years. Many hope this will be the final chapter of this tragedy.
Below are the names of the deceased.
Lieutenant Colonel Juanita Warman, 55
Major Libaldo Eduardo Caraveo, 52
Capt. John P. Gaffani, 56
Capt. Russell Seeger, 51
Staff Sgt. Justin Decro, 32
Sgt. Amy Krueger, 29
Specification. Jason Dean Hunter, 22
Specification. Frederick Z. Green, 29
Feed forward. Aaron T. Nemelka, 19
Feed forward. Michael S. Pearson, 22
Feed forward. Kang Shixiong, 23 years old
private. Francheska Velez, 21 (and her unborn child)
Michael Grant Cahill, 62
This is a development story. We will provide more details as soon as they become available.