FORT HOOD — Pfcs. Alan Carroll, Michael Pearson and Aaron Nemelka came to the Soldier Readiness Processing Center's Station 13 on the morning of Nov. 5, 2009, but were told to come back later.
They went to chow and returned about 12:30 p.m., talking about their week and what their upcoming deployment to Afghanistan — their first — was going to be like.
Little did they know that the war was about to come to them.
“We were continuing to talk about the weekend and heard shouts of Allahu Akbar!'” Carroll said, adding that their conversation continued.
“I thought it was a pop gun at first. We didn't know exactly what was going on.”
A few moments elapsed before things became clear. The sting of a bullet that hit his left shoulder and the sight of blood brought into focus the battle they had suddenly been thrust into, and it quickly became obvious that nothing less than their survival was at stake.
Taking the stand for 21 minutes, Carroll, now a sergeant, recounted a survivor's tale Thursday morning in the capital murder trial of Maj. Nidal Hasan, charged with killing 13 people and wounding another 31 in a shooting spree that is the worst ever on a U.S. military installation.
His testimony came after a contentious 24 hours in which defense attorneys and the judge in this case, Col. Tara Osborn, wrestled over a request to change the way they advise Hasan, who is acting as his own attorney.
Read more here: http://www.mysanantonio.com/default/article/Hood-shooting-survivor-recounts-deaths-of-3-4716860.php