An Article 32 hearing occurs only in military court and is held to determine whether there is enough evidence to proceed with a trial. Prosecutors and the defense can call witnesses and both sides are able to question them and present other evidence.
When the hearing begins Tuesday, Maj. Nidal Hasan will be sitting just a few feet from the witnesses. A military officer later will determine whether Hasan should be tried on 13 counts of premeditated murder and 32 counts of attempted premeditated murder.
The hearing is expected to last at least three weeks and will include plenty of testimony from survivors about the graphic details of the attack, the worst shooting ever on a US military base.
The shootings happened on a sunny autumn day at Fort Hood, one of the country’s largest Army posts. About 300 people were in the Soldier Readiness Processing Center, a facility where soldiers must go before they are deployed to update vaccinations, get vision and dental screenings, finalize their wills or sign up to talk to a chaplain.
As soldiers waited in various lines, a man suddenly jumped up on a desk, shouted “Allahu Akbar!” — Arabic for “God is great!” — and started firing two guns, witnesses said.
The soldiers and civilian workers were unarmed as 100 rounds came at them directly or ricocheted off the desks and tile floor. The rampage lasted only about 10 minutes, until two Fort Hood police officers shot and wounded Hasan, who is now paralyzed. He remains in custody.
In the wake of the rampage, a disturbing picture of Hasan began to emerge. The American-born Muslim was trying to get out of his pending deployment because he opposed the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. He recently had been saying goodbye to friends and neighbors, and had given away copies of the Holy Qur’an and many of his other belongings.
Hasan, 40, has been in custody since the shootings, first in a San Antonio military hospital and now in a nearby jail. The military justice system does not offer bail.
Prosecutors have not said whether they would seek the death penalty if the judge determine there is enough evidence for a military trial, known as a court-martial.
It’s unclear if Hasan’s military record or mental health issues will be addressed at the Article 32 hearing. Lead defense attorney John Galligan said a defense psychiatrist plans to review Hasan’s military files.
