US to livestream Army firing squad execution of Fort Hood shooter, Pentagon says
WASHINGTON, Oct 8 (Reuters) - The US will livestream the Army's upcoming firing squad execution of a gunman who killed 13 people at the Fort Hood military base in 2009, the Pentagon said, in what would be an unprecedented broadcast of a US execution.
The U.S. plans to livestream the execution of a gunman who killed 13 people at Fort Hood military base in 2009, the Pentagon announced. Nidal Hasan, a former Army psychiatrist, is set to be the first person executed by firing squad by the U.S. military since 1945. The execution is scheduled for December 3 at the same base where Hasan attacked.
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth supports the decision to livestream the event, arguing that it's necessary to demonstrate the consequences of violent actions. The decision comes amid ongoing debates about the death penalty in the U.S. No other country is known to livestream or telecast a legal execution, according to experts. Public executions have become rare worldwide, with recent examples in Iran and Taliban-run Afghanistan.
Extrajudicial lynchings in the U.S. were common until the 20th century, with the last legally sanctioned public execution occurring in 1936. Hegseth stated that the execution time and location were chosen to mirror the 2009 shooting, aiming to make the consequences clear. The White House has declined to comment on whether President Donald Trump supports the livestreaming, referring questions to the Pentagon.
Death Penalty Action, an organization opposing capital punishment, noted that this would be the first military execution since 1961, which was carried out by hanging.
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