Congressional members have introduced a bill to halt the pay of shooting suspect Maj. Nidal Hasan, who’s facing numerous murder counts for his admitted 2009 shooting rampage at Fort Hood.
Maj. Hasan has been drawing his regular Army salary while the trial goes forth, to the tune of about $300,000 so far, ABC reported.
Current law lets the military suspend pay of civilian workers, but not those who are on official active service, ABC said.
Reps. Frank Wolf, Tim Griffin and Tom Rooney have brought forth a measure that could change that, the “Stop Pay for Violent Offenders Act,” giving authority for military heads to suspend pay for military members charged in sex-related offenses or in capital crimes.
Maj. Hasan’s trial, following months of delays, is finally set for Aug. 6.
He’s charged with several counts of both premeditated and attempted murder, and is acting as his own attorney. Just recently, he admitted he did the shootings, but said he was trying to defend the Taliban.
• Cheryl K. Chumley can be reached at cchumley@washingtontimes.com.
Please read our comment policy before commenting.