Quoted:
Ft. Hood shooter back in court Thursday
Appears for Article 32 status conference hearing
Hasan's defense attorney, John Galligan , is expected to request that the Article 32 hearing be closed to the media and public for fear the pretrial publicity would
jeopardize Hasan's ability to get a fair trial at Fort Hood.
That decision could be made Thursday at the status conference hearing set to begin at 9 a.m.
Media will be viewing Thursday's hearing in a separate closed-circuit media viewing area.
After Thursday's court session, the Article 32 hearing is expected to start back up on Oct. 12 with witness testimony from all of the 32 injured in the shooting spree. The pretrial hearing is expected to last several weeks.
After the hearing concludes, Col. James Pohl, the investigating officer appointed to the proceedings, will recommend whether Hasan should face court martial and potentially the death penalty.
Military prosecutors have already expressed that they do plan to seek the death penalty in this case.
At the June 1 opening session of the pretrial investigation, Hasan appeared in a wheelchair. He was
paralyzed from the chest down after sustaining two bullet wounds from officers attempting to stop his rampage.
Hasan faces 13 counts of premeditated murder and 32 counts of attempted premeditated murder as a result of the shootings on Nov. 5.
An Article 32 hearing is often compared to a grand jury proceeding in civilian court because an examiner weighs evidence and then tells commanders if they should call a trial. But, unlilke grand juries, Article 32 hearings typically are open to the public and the media.
The military law allows Pohl to close the proceeding on a case-by-case circumstance.
Words cannot describe how impossible it is for that piece of human filth to get a fair trial...and he earned it.