Don’t Make Martyrs Out of Terrorists

On November 5, 2009, doctor and U.S. Army Major Nidal Malik Hasan murdered 13 people — twelve U.S. soldiers and one civilian — while wounding 30 others at Fort Hood Army base near Killeen, Texas. It remains one of the deadliest Islamist terror attacks in the United States since 9/11. He was sentenced to death by a military jury in August of 2013 and has been rotting in a cell at Fort Leavenworth ever since, playing out the string as he exhausted his appeals.

Few men deserve death more richly. The world is full of skeptics about the religious and ethical appropriateness of the death penalty; I have never been one of them. Quite simply, I think there are acts a man or woman can commit that render them unworthy of life in society’s eyes, and slaughtering 13 people and wounding 30 others — all while betraying your oath to your country and your military brethren — amply qualifies. In fact, 13 years is an appallingly long time for the survivors and families of the victims to have to wait through the law’s delay, but procedure must be observed.

About the Author

Jeffrey Blehar

Jeffrey Blehar is a National Review staff writer living in Chicago. He is also the co-host of National Review’s Political Beats podcast, which explores the great music of the modern era with guests from the political world happy to find something non-political to talk about.

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Pete Hegseth

On November 5, 2009, doctor and U.S. Army Major Nidal Malik Hasan murdered 13 people — twelve U.S. soldiers and one civilian — while wounding 30 others at Fort Hood Army base near Killeen, Texas. It remains one of the deadliest Islamist terror attacks in the United States since 9/11. He was sentenced to death by a military jury in August of 2013 and has been rotting in a cell at Fort Leavenworth ever since, playing out the string as he exhausted his appeals.

Few men deserve death more richly. The world is full of skeptics about the religious and ethical appropriateness of the death penalty; I have never been one of them. Quite simply, I think there are acts a man or woman can commit that render them unworthy of life in society’s eyes, and slaughtering 13 people and wounding 30 others — all while betraying your oath to your country and your military brethren — amply qualifies. In fact, 13 years is an appallingly long time for the survivors and families of the victims to have to wait through the law’s delay, but procedure must be observed.

About the Author

Jeffrey Blehar

Jeffrey Blehar is a National Review staff writer living in Chicago. He is also the co-host of National Review’s Political Beats podcast, which explores the great music of the modern era with guests from the political world happy to find something non-political to talk about.