Retired senior officers urge Pentagon to scrap planned execution livestream

A group of 72 retired U.S. generals, admirals and other senior officers wrote to the President, lawmakers and citizens urging the cancellation of a planned live broadcast of the December 3 execution of Army psychiatrist Nidal Hasan. They contend that televising the firing-squad death would constitute a barbaric abuse of authority, create a martyr for extremist propaganda, and breach the Constitution’s prohibition on cruel and unusual punishment.

The Pentagon revealed the livestream plan last week, and President Donald Trump has said he "absolutely" approves, though no final decision has been made. Lawmakers across the aisle, religious leaders and now these former military officials have publicly criticized the idea. Signatories include notable retirees such as Tony Taguba, Moe Davis, Charles Bolden and Claudia Kennedy, many of whom served during the Iraq and Afghanistan wars. The execution would be the first public one in the United States in almost a century, and the proposal has sparked a broader debate over the use of capital punishment and media exposure.