A day after he was sentenced to death, officials at the Kansas military prison say Major Nidal Hasan will likely have his long and bushy beard forcibly shaved.
A military jury on Wednesday sentenced Hasan to death for the 2009 shooting rampage that killed 13 people at a Texas military base.
Fort Leavenworth military prison officials said they could not comment specifically on Hasan and his beard but issued a general statement.
“All inmates are considered soldiers and are treated as such. All inmates at the US Disciplinary Barracks must abide by Army Regulation 670-1 (grooming standards which prohibit beards) unless there is an exception to policy granted.”
Hasan had sought such an exemption last year, but it was denied by Pentagon officials.
Army rules say prisoners who refuse to shave “may be restrained with the reasonable force necessary” to apply electric hair clippers and a restraint chair may be used. All uses of force must be videotaped and officials must produce a “detailed written report” afterward.
Hasan, citing religious reasons, began growing his beard in violation of Army grooming regulations more than a year ago. The original judge in his court-martial tried unsuccessfully for months to force Hasan to shave, holding him in contempt of court and ordering him to observe court proceedings from a trailer outside the Fort Hood courthouse.
At one point, military judge Colonel Gregory Gross ordered a heavily armed team of military police to the courthouse to forcibly shave Hasan, but the action was stopped by an appeals court.
The ensuing legal battle over the beard delayed the court-martial for months, and a military appeals court ultimately removed Gross from the case, ruling he had let the trial become a “duel of wills” with Hasan.
Colonel Tara Osborn, who replaced Gross, ruled the beard was a matter for Hasan’s chain of command, not the court, and the issue was not raised during his court-martial.