Fort Hood Shooter Nidal Hasan

[Curt James]

This is old news, but something I hadn't seen. Amazing to me that someone can be seen killing all these people and still find a lawyer willing to defend him.

And what's even more amazing is that the U.S. Army or U.S. government would continue to pay this man a salary.

Haven't followed this case and so perhaps (hopefully) they've already locked him up and thrown away the key.

Here's the article:

Accused Fort Hood Shooter Nidal Hasan Can't Find a Bank Willing to Cash His Checks

Hasan's Lawyer Says His Client Is Being Discriminated Against
By EMILY FRIEDMAN
Aug. 2, 2010

The attorney for the man charged with last year's deadly shooting rampage at Texas' Fort Hood Army post says his client, who is still on the military's payroll, can't find a bank willing to cash his checks. An attorney for Nidal Hasan, who is currently awaiting his trial for his involvement in last year's shootings at Fort Hood in Texas, says Hasan is having trouble finding a bank that is willing to cash his checks.

While Maj. Nidal Hasan sits in Bell County Jail in Belton, Texas, waiting for his next hearing in October (2010), his lawyer, John Galligan, has been shopping around to banks trying to find a financial institution willing to take on his client as a customer.

"Various banks have refused, without any specificity, to permit Hasan to open a checking account where he can have his military pay deposited," Galligan told ABC News. Hasan faces 13 counts of murder and 32 counts of attempted premeditated murder stemming from the Nov. 5 shooting that fatally wounded 13 soldiers. If convicted, Hasan could face the death penalty. Hasan still is receiving payment from the U.S. military because, according to a spokesman, he is still a service member . "He is a major in the United States Army and will therefore be paid until he is no longer a major," said Lt. Col. Chris Garver. "So yes, he's still receiving payment."

According to Army records, Hasan stands to receive a check for about $6,000 every month. He is also eligible for what the Army calls an "incentive pay" that could be as much as $15,000 annually. Galligan declined to comment on how much Hasan is worth.

Hasan's lawyer said that his client was notified about a month ago that his longtime bank, Bank of America, was no longer interested in holding his money.

"They gave us advance notice, yes, but it represents the discriminatory attitude and atmosphere that's pervasive in central Texas and in the Fort Hood community," said Galligan. Diane Wagner, a representative for Bank of America, said of Galligan's claims, "We do not comment on customer relationships for privacy reasons."

Galligan said that among the banks into which he has tried to deposit Hasan's checks, the one that declined him and upset him the most was the Fort Hood National Bank. "The bank's motto is 'serving those who serve,' but apparently that's not true in Hasan's case," said Galligan.

Messages left at Fort Hood National Bank for comment were not immediately returned.

A welcome message on the bank's website said the institute has been serving the military community for more than 45 years. Galligan said he's offered to have Hasan's checks deposited into a trust and also has provided banks with proof of his power of attorney but has still had no luck.

The discrimination Hasan is facing, says Galligan, is a foreshadowing of what he'll likely face at trial. "You've got all these banks marching in lockstep in a discriminatory manner against Hasan," said Galligan. "It's not like he's charged with any banking irregularities or money laundering. It's just outright discriminatory."

"How is he going to get a fair trial at Fort Hood if he can't even get a bank account?" said Galligan. According to Shannon Phillips, the deputy general counsel for the Independent Bankers Association of Texas, the banks that have rejected Hasan are entitled to do so.

"It's within a bank's right to do it," said Phillips. "I've seen banks close accounts because of suspicious activity or if a personal account is being used for business purposes. And the banks have every right to do so without any explanation."

"But it doesn't happen very often," added Phillips. Phillips said that if Hasan had no banking missteps, it's entirely likely that the financial institutions don't want to be associated with Hasan because of "personal reasons."

"I think we can understand that," he said. Galligan said that Hasan, who will be paralyzed for the rest of his life, is "coherent" and knows what is going on in terms of his finances. "It's issues like this that are unnecessary bumps in the road for my client," said Galligan. If found guilty, Hasan could face the death penalty.

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Unnecessary bumps? This man should be grateful for "bank discrimination" and paralysis as his only consequences.

The lawyer's statements are simply incredible.

And I wouldn't want to be Lt. Col. Chris Garver, the army spokesperson whose job it was to defend that Hasan was still receiving a paycheck.

I mean if killing 13 co-workers isn't reason enough for an employer to stop issuing paychecks then there's something terribly wrong.

Going to Google to see if the case has been resolved...

 

[DOMS]

And yet profiling is supposed to be considered "bad."

 

[BIGBLUECHEVELLE]

I dont want to sound barbaric or dumb but I don't give a shit i'm going to....If I were the employee of the first bank he walked into I would pull out a shotgun to his face and I quote before i blasted him say "Say hi to those 17 virgins scumbag" then his face would be plastered all over the wall... end of story end of problem some what of a bit of justice...

 

[DOMS]

 

[Curt James]

This from Hasan's Wiki page:

On October 12, 2010, Hasan was due to appear for his first broad military hearing into the attack. The hearing, formally called an Article 32 proceeding, akin to a grand jury hearing but open to the public, is expected to span four to six weeks. He could face the death sentence.

However, the hearing ground to an abrupt halt, when Hasan's lawyers were granted a 24-hour continuance. The hearing, designed to help the top Army commander at Ft. Hood determine whether there is enough evidence to court-martial Hasan, was scheduled to begin calling witnesses but was delayed by scheduling and procedural disputes.

The hearing proceeded on October 14 with witness testimonies from soldiers who survived the shootings.

On November 15, the military hearing would end when Galligan declined to offer a defense case on the grounds that the White House and Defense Department refused to hand over documents he requested pertaining to an intelligence review of the shootings. Neither the defense nor prosecution offered to deliver a closing argument.

On November 18, Colonel James L. Pohl, who served as the investigating officer for the Article 32 hearing, recommended that Hasan be court-martialed and face the death penalty.

His recommendation was forwarded to another U.S. Army Colonel at Ft. Hood, who, after filing his own report, will present his recommendation to the post commander. The post commander will make the final decision on whether Hasan faces a trial and the death penalty.

###

 

[Curt James]

Fox News report:

Fort Hood Gunman Sane, Fit to Stand Trial, Army Panel Reportedly Rules

Published January 26, 2011

(Reuters) A military panel reportedly has ruled that the Army psychiatrist charged with killing 13 people and wounding dozens more in a shooting rampage at the Fort Hood Army base is sane and fit to stand trial. The ruling by the Army's sanity board clears the way for the Army to pursue a court-martial against Maj. Nidal Hasan, who could face the death penalty, Agence France-Presse reported.

The board submitted its report to Army officials and defense attorneys last week, offering an assessment of Maj. Nidal Hasan's mental state during the November 2009 shootings that killed 13 and wounded more than two dozen others and his competence to stand trial. A source close to the case told AFP the board found Hasan to be sane and fit to be tried. Hasan's lead attorney, John Galligan, would not confirm the panel's findings, but suggested Tuesday that they did not go in Hasan's favor.

"I'm not going to say what they ruled," he told AFP. "I would just say this: I don't think the report will be anything that will be an impediment to the charges from the government's perspective."

Galligan contended that the three-member panel of mental health professionals did not have all the information needed for the evaluation, including key government reports about the shooting that have yet to be released. Galligan said he will disclose the results of the evaluation after a brigade commander, who received the report, makes a recommendation next month on whether Hasan should stand trial and face the death penalty for 13 counts of premeditated murder and 32 counts of attempted premeditated murder.

That officer has agreed to delay any action until February 23, (2011) AFP reported.

After that, a commanding general will make the final decision. An Army colonel who presided over an evidentiary hearing last fall made an initial recommendation that Hasan, an American-born Muslim of Palestinian descent, should be court-martialed and face the death penalty. Army officials have not said whether they would seek that punishment if Hasan goes to trial.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Officials say Army Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan was the gunman behind the deadly shootings at the Fort Hood Army Base in Texas, in which 13 people were killed and 38 others were wounded.