Pentagon to Livestream Fort Hood Shooter's Execution: Legal or Not?

The Pentagon has announced it will livestream the firing-squad execution of Nidal Malik Hasan — the mass shooter at Fort Hood in 2009 — marking the first time the United States has carried out such a broadcast. The declaration, made Thursday, drew fierce backlash from the legal community, with experts and human rights organizations arguing the move may violate U.S. and international law and could place minors in harm's way.

The U.S. military rarely applies the death penalty; its last execution was the hanging of an officer in 1961. Firing squads are even rarer, last used by the military in 1945.

What was Hasan convicted of?

Nidal Malik Hasan, then an Army major, opened fire at a military processing center at Fort Hood, Texas, on Nov. 5, 2009, killing 13 people and wounding 32 others.

A military psychiatrist determined Hasan acted to prevent the deployment of troops to Afghanistan and to stop the killing of Muslims. Hasan himself was also scheduled to deploy later that month.

After a lengthy court-martial in which Hasan barely defended himself, a jury convicted him in July 2013 on 13 counts of premeditated murder and 32 counts of attempted murder, and sentenced him to death.

Although Hasan said his actions were religiously motivated and he was found to have communicated with al-Qaeda-linked elements, he was not convicted of "terrorism" because the U.S. military justice code has no separate offense for such conduct.

This week, the Pentagon said President Donald Trump had given the green light for Hasan to face a firing squad. The military requires presidential approval for executions, and only the president has the authority to specify the method.

When and where will Hasan be executed?

On Thursday, a Pentagon official said Hasan will be executed at Fort Hood itself, the military base where he killed 13 people in 2009. The official said the execution will be livestreamed.

Acting Army Secretary Adam Telle set the execution date for Dec. 3 at 1 p.m. local time (18:00 GMT).

What has Hegseth said?

In a podcast interview this week, Hegseth said livestreaming would serve as a deterrent. "We're going to make sure people can watch, that it's public, because people need to understand that things like this have serious consequences," Hegseth told far-right podcast host Jack Posobiec.

He added that the timing of the execution is symbolic: "We're going to do it at 1 o'clock, exactly the time he committed the act, and it will be soldiers with rifles carrying out the firing squad."

Who typically attends executions?

Rules vary across the 27 U.S. states that still have the death penalty. Texas law allows up to five close relatives of victims, a spiritual adviser, judicial officials, a state-appointed chaplain, a judge, a sheriff and the press to attend an execution.

However, all of these people must be over 18.

When was the last public execution in the U.S.?

It was Aug. 14, 1936. Rainey Bethea was publicly hanged in Owensboro, Kentucky, after confessing to the rape and murder of 70-year-old Lishia Edwards.

What does international law say about public executions?

The U.S. is a signatory to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), which prohibits torture and cruel, inhuman or degrading punishment. While the covenant does not fully ban the death penalty, it strictly limits its use to "the most serious crimes" and encourages abolition.

Washington ratified the treaty in 1992 but entered reservations, declaring it retains the right to apply the death penalty as it sees fit.

Legal experts say publicly executing Hasan could violate the covenant's prohibition on degrading punishment. The livestream could also be recorded and widely shared.

What does U.S. law say about who can witness an execution?

British-American human rights lawyer Clive Stafford Smith, who has represented death row inmates and founded the Louisiana Capital Assistance Center in New Orleans in 1993, called the move "barbaric."

He said a public execution broadcast in this manner would violate numerous U.S. laws banning the transmission of obscene, offensive or shocking material, especially to minors.

There is no single federal law governing who may witness an execution, but states that retain the death penalty typically bar minors. Similarly, the Army's justice code also prohibits minors from witnessing executions.

"I have witnessed six executions and I still suffer from PTSD [post-traumatic stress disorder] to this day," Stafford Smith told Al Jazeera. "It is a nightmare, and some people will have a traumatic reaction to it."

Smith said numerous legal challenges are likely, and the Army would have to weigh many factors if it proceeds with broadcasting the execution. Opponents could question how the U.S. military would prevent children from watching the livestream, and how it would reduce the gruesomeness of shooting Hasan based on the body parts targeted.

On using public execution as a deterrent, Stafford Smith said the opposite could happen. He argued it could "inspire more crimes" and that Hasan could be seen by some as a "martyr."

He added: "This will likely end up before Congress. Democrats will want to stop it. It will be an interesting fight."

How have politicians and human rights groups reacted?

Democratic Senator Chris Murphy called the move "disgusting" and compared it to executions carried out by the Islamic State group (ISIL). "I understand that in this country we have the death penalty, but public executions are medieval," he told CNN.

Amnesty International Australia said Hegseth's statement showed "an astonishing disregard for human dignity" and called on Melbourne to intervene.

Meanwhile, New Zealand's national censorship office told human rights groups urging them to object that it has no authority to stop internet users from watching the livestream — a sign that governments seeking to restrict access could face hurdles.