Pentagon plans to livestream Nidal Hasan’s scheduled execution
Officials have announced a livestream plan for the Fort Hood shooter’s execution, scheduled for December 3, 2026. Federal court proceedings could still affect the date.
The Pentagon plans to livestream the scheduled execution of Nidal Hasan, the former Army officer convicted in the 2009 Fort Hood mass shooting. The Associated Press reported the announcement on October 8, 2026, after Pete Hegseth said the public would be able to watch. 1
The announced plan
Hegseth discussed public viewing in an interview with Real America’s Voice. NBC News subsequently reported that a Defense Department official confirmed plans for a livestream, while the platform remained unclear. As of October 8, the announcement described a future broadcast whose distribution details had not been fully explained. 2
The Army’s October 7 announcement sets the execution for December 3, 2026, at 1 p.m. Central Standard Time at Fort Hood, Texas, by firing squad. It says Acting Army Secretary Adam Telle directed the execution on October 6, following President Donald Trump’s approval of the death sentence on October 2. 3
The case behind the announcement
Hasan, an Army psychiatrist at the time, killed 13 people and wounded 32 at Fort Hood on November 5, 2009. The case proceeded through the military justice system, and a court-martial convicted him in 2013. 2
The court-martial imposed a death sentence on August 28, 2013. Its punishment also included dismissal from the service and forfeiture of pay and allowances. The Army’s contemporaneous account described automatic review through the military appellate courts. 4
The Army now says the Supreme Court declined to review Hasan’s court-martial conviction on March 31, 2025. Presidential approval followed the completion of that appellate process. 3
Historical context and remaining legal steps
If carried out, Hasan’s execution would be the first by the U.S. military since 1961. The last was Army Private John Bennett’s hanging at the U.S. Disciplinary Barracks in Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, according to a May 2026 review in Army Lawyer. 5
Remote viewing has a separate precedent. In 2001, the Justice Department arranged closed-circuit viewing of Timothy McVeigh’s execution for qualifying victims and survivors of the Oklahoma City bombing. Access was restricted to registered adults, and recording devices were prohibited to prevent the viewing from becoming public. 6
The December date remains subject to possible legal intervention. Army Lawyer explains that, after presidential approval, a military prisoner may seek habeas corpus review in federal court and request a stay of execution. A judge’s decision to grant a stay could prevent the sentence from being carried out while those proceedings continue. 5
Story context and image credits
Reported October 8, 2026. Execution scheduled for December 3, 2026, at 1 p.m. CST at Fort Hood, Texas; it has not occurred. Legal proceedings could affect the date. The shooting occurred November 5, 2009, and the death sentence was imposed August 28, 2013. Photographs are archival: January 27, 2025, and August 19, 2013.
View the full photo-credit recordView the original Instagram publicationSources & notes
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