COLD BLOODED KILLERS (Killers from around the World) (13 page)

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Nidal Malik Hasan

Fort Hood Shooting Spree

On November 5
^th
, 2009, U.S. Army Major Nidal Malik Hasan shot and killed thirteen and wounding another twenty-nine on the most populous U.S. military base in the world, Fort Hood, Killeen, Texas.

Born in Arlington, Virginia, to Muslim-Palestinian parents, Hasan immediately joined the United States army after graduating high school and spent eight years in the service while earning a bachelor’s degree at Virginia Tech in Biochemistry. He went on to earn his Medical degree in 2003, and completed his residency in Psychiatry at the Walter Reed Army Medical Center.

He was promoted from captain to major in May of 2009 after completing a fellowship in Disaster and Preventive Psychiatry at the Center of Traumatic Stress. Before being transferred to Fort Hood in July of 2009, however, he received a meager performance evaluation.

It was later understood, post killing-spree, that Hasan was greatly influenced by the killing of two recruiters in Little Rock, Arkansas, by Abdulhakim Mujahid Muhammad.

Hasan made peculiar statements against the American military presence in Iraq and Afghanistan, stating that "the Muslims should stand up and fight against the aggressor," referring to the US. While he had expressed optimism that President Barack Obama would end both wars, he became increasingly agitated and frequently argued with soldiers. Hasan seemed happy about the shooting in Little Rock, but didn’t like how the suspect was treated as a criminal. Hasan made statements saying that the U.S. army should get out of Iraq and Afghanistan, and said that more people like Muhammad should “strap bombs on themselves and go into Times Square."

Hasan was scheduled to be deployed to Afghanistan on November 28
^th
. Preceding the shooting spree, Hasan told a local store owner that he was stressed about his forthcoming deployment as he might have to fight and kill fellow Muslims.

In the Soldier Readiness Center at Fort Hood on November 5
^th
, 2009, Hasan shouted ‘Allahu Akbar,’ meaning ‘God is greatest,’ and then opened fire, killing thirteen and injuring another twenty-nine. It was the worst shooting ever on an American Military Base, even though the incident, from start to finish, lasted just ten minutes.

As Hasan was running out of the building he exchanged shots with Sergeant Kimberly Munley who he hit twice in the legs. Civilian Police Officer Sergeant Mark Todd also fired on the gunman, hitting him in the spine, subsequently paralyzing him from the waist down. Once down, Officer Todd approached Hasan and kicked his gun away before placing handcuffs on him.    Hasan was formally charged with thirteen counts of premeditated murder and thirty-two counts of attempted murder. Military prosecutors sought the death penalty, but Hasan’s lawyer, however, said it was likely that he would plead not guilty by reason of insanity.

The hearing started on October 14
^th
, 2010 with witness testimonies from soldiers who had survived the shootings. On November 15
^th
, the military hearing ended when Hasan’s lawyer declined to offer a defense case on the grounds that the White House and Defense Department refused to hand over requested documents pertaining to an intelligence review of the shootings. Neither the defense nor prosecution offered to deliver a closing argument. On November 18
^th
, 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 Fort Hood who, after filing his own report, presented his recommendation to the post commander. The post commander made the final decision on whether Hasan faced a trial and the death penalty.

On July 6
^th
, 2011, the Fort Hood post commander referred the case to a general court-martial for trial. The court-martial was authorized to consider death as an authorized punishment. On July 27
^th
, 2011, Fort Hood Chief Circuit Judge Colonel Gregory Gross set a March 5
^th
, 2012, trial date for Hasan’s court martial. Hasan declined to enter any plea and Judge Gross granted a request by Hasan's attorneys to defer the plea to an unspecified date. Hasan subsequently notified Gross that he had released the civilian attorney who had been his counsel in his previous court appearances. At his court martial, Hasan will instead be represented by three military lawyers at no cost to him. Hasan continues to receive paychecks and medical treatment from the military.

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Joseph T. Wesbecker

At the Standard Gravure Plant in Louisville, Kentucky, on September 14
^th
, 1989, eight people were killed and another twelve injured by Joseph Wesbecker, forty-seven, before he committed suicide. Wesbecker was only thirteen months old when his father died, leaving his sixteen year old mother to raise him on her own He was not a very intelligent student in high school and dropped out in the ninth grade; later he obtained his G.E.D. He married, had two sons, and in 1971 moved his family to Kentucky where he worked at a printing plant. In 1978, however, his personal life took a downward turn. His wife left him, they had a custody battle of their children, and Wesbecker admitted himself to a hospital for psychiatric treatment. In 1983 he married again, but it didn’t last long and soon he became separated from his family, withdrawn, and living a lonely life off work on disability for his mental illness.

Wesbecker had a long history of psychiatric illness and was treated in hospitals at least three times between 1978 and 1987. He was diagnosed as suffering from alternating episodes of deep depression and manic depression. He was plagued by confusion, anger, and anxiety, and made several attempts to commit suicide. Hospital records suggested that Wesbecker posed a threat to himself and others.

In the years prior to the shooting, Wesbecker more than once threatened to "kill a bunch of people" or to bomb Standard Gravure; at one point he considered hiring an assassin to kill several executives of the company. Apparently he’d even discussed these things with his wife before their divorce. When Wesbecker left Standard Gravure in August of 1988, he told other workers that he would come back, wipe out the place, and get even with the company. Shortly before the shooting, he told one of his aunts that he was upset about things at work, and told her that they’d get their payback. These were things he said all the time, however, and she didn't take the threat too seriously.

At 8:30 a.m., on September 14
^th
, 1989, Wesbecker parked his car in front of the main entrance to the Standard Gravure Plant where he used to work. Before entering the building, he took the following weapons from his car: a SIG Sauer 9mm semi-automatic handgun, a .38 caliber Smith & Wesson Revolver, a bayonet, an AK-47 assault rifle, two MAC-11 submachine guns, and hundreds of rounds of ammunition in a duffel bag.

Taking the elevator to the executive reception area on the third floor, as soon as the doors opened, he began firing at receptionists Sharon Needy and Angela Bowman. Needy was killed, and Bowman paralyzed by a shot in the back. Searching for Michael Shea, president of Standard Gravure, and other supervisors and bosses of the plant, Wesbecker calmly walked through the hallways, deliberately shooting at people. He killed James Husband and injured Forrest Conrad, Paula Warman, and John Stein, a maintenance supervisor, who he shot in the head and abdomen, before heading down the stairs to the pressroom, where he killed Paul Sallee. He then wounded two electricians from Marine Electric that were working on a broken machine, Stanley Hatfield and David Sadenfaden, and left the duffel bag under a stairwell. Wesbecker walked down to the basement where he encountered pressman, John Tingle, who, alerted by the loud noises, wanted to see what was happening. Tingle greeted his colleague, and asked him what was going on. Wesbecker replied, "Hi John...I told them I'd be back. Get away from me." Wesbecker continued his path through the basement, shooting Richard Barger in the back, killing him. According to witnesses, Wesbecker approached Barger's body and apologized; apparently he’d killed him accidentally as he didn't see at whom he was shooting. Back on the press floor, he shot at anyone in his way, killing James Wible and Lloyd White, and finally entered the break room where he emptied his magazine, hitting all seven workers present, killing William Ganote with a shot to the head. Wesbecker then reloaded and resumed firing, fatally wounding Kenneth Fentress. When Wesbecker stepped out to the pressroom, he pulled his SIG Sauer, put it under his chin and shot himself, ending his shooting spree that had lasted for about half an hour. He’d fired about forty rounds of ammunition, and left eight people dead and twelve wounded. Additionally, one person suffered a heart attack.