Fort Hood Shooter

         Maj. Nidal Hasan, who killed 13 people in his infamous shooting at Fort Hood, Texas, is facing the death penalty in a trial run by the military.  I say this with a heavy heart because the man was motivated by a twisted religious ideology that celebrates martyrdom, this is a gross violation of justice to try this man in a military court and to seek the death penalty.
       Trying him in a military court sends a very odd message to society.  The regular civilian courts are not adequately equipped to try someone who is clearly guilty and get a conviction.  Or perhaps the message is that it is not an actual trial at all, but a simple show trial, which would be a violation of Hasan's constitutional right to a fair trial by a jury of his peers. 
     The second injustice is the death penalty itself.  It is never justified to kill when self-defense is not in play.  And clearly it's not here.  The man has already been stopped and detained.  He could potentially be a valuable source of information, but instead the thirst for blood is winning the day.