Nidal Hasan convicted in Fort Hood shootings

Nidal Hasan convicted in Fort Hood shootings; jurors can decide death
By Chelsea J. Carter, CNN
updated 7:28 PM EDT, Fri August 23, 2013

STORY HIGHLIGHTS
NEW: Husband of a victim says death penalty "would be too lenient" for Hasan
Penalty phase begins Monday, death penalty can be considered
Jurors "will decide whether you live or die," judge tells Hasan
Maj. Nidal Hasan is convicted of 13 counts of murder

Fort Hood, Texas (CNN) -- A military jury on Friday convicted Army Maj. Nidal Hasan of 13 counts of murder and 32 counts of attempted murder in a shooting rampage at Fort Hood, Texas, making it possible for the death penalty to be considered as a punishment.

The jurors deliberated less than seven hours over two days before finding Hasan guilty on all charges in connection with the November 5, 2009, shootings at a deployment process center.

The Army psychiatrist admitted to targeting soldiers he was set to deploy with to Afghanistan, saying previously he wanted to protect the Taliban and its leaders from the U.S. military.

Under the rules of a military court-martial, the jury must return a unanimous verdict of premeditated murder for the death penalty to be considered as a punishment option. The jury is not required to tell the court whether they reached a unanimous verdict on the attempted murder charges.

The court-martial moves on Monday to the penalty phase, where Hasan -- acting as his own attorney -- will have the opportunity to address the jurors considering whether he should be executed for his actions.
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