Major Nidal Hasan charged with mass murder of 13 at Fort Hood

U.S. Army Major Nidal Hasan has been accused of premeditated mass murder of his 13 comrades under military law. He faces a court martial. Hasan has the right to remain silent and does not have to take the stand in his own defence.

FORT HOOD, Texas - U.S. Army Major Nidal Malik Hasan has been charged with 13 counts of premeditated murder in connection with the bloodbath that left 13 dead and 43 soldiers and civilians wounded on Nov. 5. The accused soldier will face a court-martial under the Uniform Code of Military Justice and has the right to remain silent and to retain a lawyer. He can't be compelled to take the stand and does not have to answer questions even if they are asked by his superiors in the army. The charges were announced Thursday by Chris Grey, chief of public affairs for the USA Criminal Investigation Command based at Ft. Belvoir, Virginia. Of the 43 Soldiers and civilians injured during the incident at the Soldier's Readiness Processing Center located on Fort Hood 15 are still hospitalized; three remain in intensive care units, and 12 have been placed in recovery rooms, the army said. 34 of the total 43 injuries were from gunshot wounds. "I will not be releasing any details today that we feel will jeopardize the ongoing criminal investigation or any future legal proceedings," said Grey during a press conference, a transcript of which was made available later. "The investigation remains ongoing. Let me reassure the American public, we are looking into every possible reason for this shooting, and we are aggressively following every possible lead. We are collecting, analyzing and disseminating to the appropriate agencies, all critical information pertaining to this case," he said. "I have been informed that U.S. Army Major Nidal Malik Hasan, a 39 year old psychiatrist, assigned to the Darnell Medical Center, Fort Hood, Texas, has been charged with: 13 specifications of premeditated murder under Article 118 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice," he said. "These are initial charges and additional charges may be preferred in the future subject to the ongoing criminal investigation," he said. "It's important to remember that the preferral of charges is the first step in the court martial process and that a charge is merely an accusation. The accused is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty, and we have a duty and obligation to protect the Constitutional Rights of all involved," he said. Hasan has obtained legal representation. An accused Soldier has the right to be represented by civilian counsel at no cost to the government, or by detailed military counsel at no expense to the accused, he said.