FORT HOOD — One of the biggest capital murder trials in U.S. military history came to an abrupt halt on its second day as Maj. Nidal Hasan's standby counsel team asked that its role in the proceeding be modified.
Lawyers on the team said Hasan is intentionally seeking the death penalty in his court-martial.
The military judge, Col. Tara Osborn, cleared the court Wednesday morning so she could conduct a closed hearing on the matter. The trial in the 2009 shooting that left 13 people dead and 31 wounded is scheduled to resume Thursday morning.
It remains to be seen how the motion filed by Lt. Col Kris Poppe and two other lawyers on Hasan's standby counsel will impact the high-profile trial. Poppe, Hasan's former lead defense attorney, has long expressed misgivings about the role of his team since Hasan sought to represent himself earlier this year.
In a discussion outside the jury's presence, Poppe told the judge it became clear when testimony began Tuesday that Hasan was attempting to remove obstacles to the death penalty — something the standby defense team found “repugnant.”
He said Hasan, who has seldom raised objections or questioned witnesses or prospective jury members, has been “engaging to working toward the death penalty.”
That statement drew a defiant reaction from Hasan, who is serving as his own attorney, with the standby counsel team present.
“Your honor, I object. That's a twist of the facts,” Hasan said.
Read more here: http://www.mysanantonio.com/default/article/Defense-lawyers-say-Hasan-seeks-death-penalty-4714036.php