Illustration of thirteen stone memorial columns and a flagpole at dusk, Fort Hood memorial, Nidal Hasan execution status

Fort Hood Shooter Execution Set for Dec. 3: Status and Livestream

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Key takeaways

  • Confirmed: acting Army Secretary Adam Telle announced that the execution of Nidal Malik Hasan will take place by firing squad at Fort Hood, Texas, on Dec. 3, after President Donald Trump approved it, according to the Associated Press. It would be the first U.S. military execution since 1961.
  • Not settled: the Pentagon told NPR the execution “will be livestreamed” with “details to follow,” but Vice President JD Vance said he did not know that would happen and Trump said the administration would make a determination, per NBC News and Bloomberg Law. No platform, access rules or regulation change has been announced.
  • Pending: Hasan’s military appeals are finished, but he can still seek habeas corpus review in civilian federal court, which could delay an execution for years. His lawyer called a filing “a distinct possibility,” according to ABC News via WBAL. As of Oct. 10, we found no report that one has been filed.
  • We do not link to or describe any stream. Nothing in this article should be read as a statement that an execution has occurred.

The Pentagon’s plan to carry out the U.S. military’s first execution in more than six decades, and its announcement that the proceeding would be livestreamed, has drawn bipartisan criticism and legal questions. This report sets out what officials have confirmed, what remains undecided and what the court record shows. It is based on public reporting, court documents and Army regulations, and it avoids graphic detail.

What is confirmed about the execution

Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell announced on Oct. 5 that Trump had approved a recommendation from Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth for Hasan to be put to death by U.S. Army firing squad, according to Military.com. Snopes reports that Trump approved the sentence on Oct. 2. On Oct. 6, acting Army Secretary Adam Telle said in a social media post that the execution will take place at Fort Hood on Dec. 3, the Associated Press reported. The AP noted that the U.S. military has not carried out the death penalty since 1961, and Reuters described it as the first military execution by firing squad since 1945.

Reports differ slightly on the time. Hegseth said the 1 p.m. time was chosen to roughly coincide with the 2009 attack, according to Reuters and ABC News; Global News, describing Telle’s post, reported 2 p.m. ET. Those are consistent if the time is Central, but we have not seen the original post and do not state a time ourselves. Hegseth also said Fort Hood was chosen because it is where the attack happened. We found no source indicating any other site; federal civilian executions are carried out under a separate system and are not part of this case.

Under military law, the president must approve a firing-squad execution, and Military.com, citing the magazine Army Lawyer, reports that the date must fall within a set window after approval, although outstanding civilian appeals could delay it much longer.

The livestream: what is verified and what is not

Hegseth said on Oct. 8 on Real America’s Voice, “We’ll make sure that people are able to watch it, that it’s public,” per the AP. A Pentagon official told Reuters, “It will be livestreamed. Details will follow,” and Hegseth replied “Correct” to a post describing the plan, according to Snopes. The Pentagon repeated to NPR on Oct. 9 that the execution “will be livestreamed,” again saying details would follow.

Other officials have been less definitive. On Oct. 9, Vance said, “I don’t know that that’s actually going to happen,” and that he would not watch a livestream, NBC News reported. Bloomberg Law reported that Trump said the administration would make a determination on whether to proceed with a public livestream, and that Republicans and Democrats alike have criticized the idea. The White House referred questions to the Pentagon, according to the AP. So the accurate status is that a livestream has been announced by the Pentagon and has not been confirmed as final; no platform, audience limits or schedule have been published.

What the rules say. Army Regulation 190-55 governs military executions. According to Snopes, it bars anyone under 18 from witnessing an execution and requires the Army to approve a witness list in advance, and it has no explicit provision for livestreaming. Snopes quotes military-law practitioner Gary Barthel as saying the Army would have to seek an exemption from the Provost Marshal General or amend the regulation. Law professor Daniel Maurer told Snopes that federal law prohibits recording executions of civilian federal prisoners (28 CFR 26.4), which he said is evidence the government would view a broadcast as cruel and unusual; that is his legal opinion, not a court ruling. The BBC also reported that the United Nations warned a livestream would “constitute a form of cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment,” and that Meta bans live streams of capital punishment.

Appeals and what could delay it

Hasan’s direct appeals under the military justice system are exhausted. The Army Court of Criminal Appeals affirmed the findings and sentence and denied reconsideration en banc on March 15, 2021; the Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces affirmed on March 4, 2024, after argument on March 28, 2023; and the Supreme Court denied his petition for review (No. 24-5225) on March 31, 2025, per the court records. The National Institute of Military Justice wrote that what remains is collateral review, in which he could file a habeas corpus petition in federal court in Kansas and seek a stay of execution, and that the chances of success have been viewed as low but that the process could take years.

The AP, citing Army Lawyer, reported that a habeas appeal could put the process on hold, potentially for years. Military.com pointed to the case of Army Pvt. Ronald Gray, whose execution President George W. Bush approved in 2008 and who remains on military death row amid habeas litigation. Hasan’s attorney, Sean Galligan, said filing is “a distinct possibility” but that no decision had been made, according to ABC News via WBAL. Separately, NPR reported that Galligan said Hasan was notified of the approval by the facility commandant with a chaplain and without a defense lawyer, which Galligan called a breach of Army regulations; we have not seen an Army response, so that is an unverified claim by his counsel.

The 2009 attack

On Nov. 5, 2009, Army Maj. Nidal Hasan, a psychiatrist, opened fire at the Soldier Readiness Processing Center at Fort Hood, near Killeen, Texas, where soldiers and civilians were preparing for deployments, according to Army Times. Thirteen people were killed and 32 were wounded, per the AP and NPR. Army Times lists those killed as Michael Grant Cahill, Libardo Eduardo Caraveo, Justin Michael DeCrow, John P. Gaffaney, Frederick Greene, Jason Dean Hunt, Amy Sue Krueger, Aaron Thomas Nemelka, Michael S. Pearson, Russell Gilbert Seager, Francheska Velez, Juanita L. Warman and Kham See Xiong. Hasan said at trial he had acted to stop soldiers from going to Afghanistan; the AP reports he described himself as having “switched sides.”

Timeline

  • Nov. 5, 2009: The shooting at Fort Hood.
  • August 2013: A military panel convicts Hasan of 13 specifications of premeditated murder and 32 of attempted premeditated murder and sentences him to death, dismissal from service and forfeiture of pay, according to the Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces opinion.
  • March 15, 2021: The Army Court of Criminal Appeals denies reconsideration after affirming the sentence.
  • March 4, 2024: The Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces affirms.
  • March 31, 2025: The Supreme Court denies review.
  • September 2025: Hegseth says he is “100% committed” to carrying out the sentence, per ABC News via WBAL.
  • Oct. 2 and 5, 2026: Trump approves the sentence (Snopes); the Pentagon announces approval of firing-squad execution (Military.com).
  • Oct. 6: Telle announces Dec. 3 at Fort Hood (AP).
  • Oct. 8-9: Hegseth and the Pentagon say it will be livestreamed; Vance and Trump signal the decision is not final.
  • Dec. 3: Scheduled date, subject to any court action.

What comes next

Watch for three things: whether Hasan files a habeas petition and a court stays the date; whether the Army publishes an exemption or amendment to Regulation 190-55 or drops the livestream; and any White House or Pentagon statement settling the broadcast question. For context on Pentagon policy this month, see our report on the Pentagon’s planned autonomous warfare command. More: Politics and government news · Warfare and military coverage.

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