What a Survivor of the Fort Hood Shooting Says About the Gunman’s Execution Being Livestreamed by the Government

10 Oct 2026, 18:22 · Thought Catalog

Ben Sklar / Getty Images

Updated 4 hours ago, October 10, 2026

Alonzo Lunsford survived 7 gunshot wounds to his head and stomach in the Fort Hood shooting. He’s planning to attend Nidal Hasan’s execution in person, but he’s concerned about the government’s plan to livestream it.

Command Sergeant Major Terrence Murphy and Col. Kent Savre stand among a crowd of soldiers and civilians holding candles at a Fort Hood vigil two days after the November 2009 mass shooting that killed 13 people. Photo by Joe Raedle / Getty Images.

“I don’t want this to be viewed upon as a spectacle, like a pay-per-view event, or like going to a basketball tournament,” Lunsford said.

U.S. Army soldiers unfurl a massive American flag ahead of a memorial ceremony at Fort Hood on April 9, 2014, honoring victims of the April 2 shooting that left three dead. Photo by Erich Schlegel / Getty Images.

Hasan, a former Army psychiatrist, killed 13 people at the Texas military base in November 2009. He served in the U.S. Army for roughly 21 years (1988–2009), advancing in rank to major. He had never deployed overseas and was scheduled for deployment to Afghanistan around the time of the shooting.

Col. John Rossi and Col. Steven Braverman address a crowd of journalists at the Bernie Beck Gate entrance to Fort Hood on November 6, 2009, the day after Nidal Hasan’s shooting rampage killed 13 people. Photo by Joe Raedle / Getty Images.

His execution is scheduled for December 3 at Fort Hood, Acting Army Secretary Adam Telle said.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth announced on October 8 that the execution would be open to viewers. “We’ll make sure that people are able to watch it, that it’s public, because people need to understand that there’s serious consequences for these types of things,” he said.

Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan in an official portrait from the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences, downloaded November 6, 2009, days after the Fort Hood attack. Credit: U.S. Government Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences via Getty Images.

Lunsford warned that the broadcast could establish a precedent for future executions. He said that would conflict with the United States’ responsibility to set a moral standard for the world.

Fellow survivor Dayna Ferguson Roscoe, who was shot in her arm, shoulder and thigh, said she hadn’t expected a livestream. “I hadn’t really thought about if I agree with the decisions being made — but it doesn’t make a difference in what happens to him,” she said.

Sgt. Fanuaee Vea holds Pvt. Savannah Green outside Fort Hood in Killeen, Texas, on November 5, 2009, hours after the mass shooting that left 13 dead. Photo by Ben Sklar / Getty Images.

Lawmakers from both parties have criticized the broadcast plan. Democratic Rep. Adam Smith, who serves on the House Armed Services Committee, said, “Calling for a livestream of the execution of Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan is disturbing and makes a mockery of our legal system.”

Republican Rep. Austin Scott of Georgia wrote on X on October 9: “I absolutely support the sentence of death, but live-streaming executions is what jihadists do.”

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