Fort Hood Shooter on Trial; Fort Hood Victims Denied Benefits
ANDERSON COOPER, CNN ANCHOR: Erin, thanks. Good evening, everyone. Tonight, why an admitted mass killer who wants to plead guilty is being put through a trial for the killings that he admits and the repercussions for his victims that the government not calling what he did an act of terrorism. Also tonight this man was allegedly a convicted sex offender who violated parole 15 times, only to be released again and again. The 16th time they let him go and police say he became a killer. Parole officers say if something isn't done, he will not be the last. We're "Keeping Them Honest" with a 360 exclusive investigation. And later, how does one of the most physically fit presidents ever wake up one day with serious heart trouble. Dr. Sanjay Gupta is here with information you need to know even if you feel just fine tonight. We start, though, tonight with the beginning of one of the most unusual and possibly most traumatizing murder trials in a very long time. The defendant, U.S. Army psychiatrist Major Nidal Hasan, shot and killed 13 people nearly four years ago at Fort Hood in Texas. He wounded 32 more. He went on his rampage three weeks before he was scheduled to deploy to Afghanistan walking into a troop processing center, shooting unarmed soldiers and officers. He says he did it for Allah. Did it as a soldier in the war against America and the West. He admits all this, by the way, but he legally cannot plead guilty. So today in opening statements on day one of his court martial acting in his own defense, if you want to call it that, he made a case for the prosecution, and that only begins to cover the strangeness of these proceedings. As for how traumatizing it may be, Major Hasan will shortly be questioning some of the very people that he himself shot. And on top of that, get this, he's still pulling down a paycheck from the Army. He's earned hundreds of thousands of dollars while awaiting trial. We'll explore that outrageous angle in just a moment. But first Ed Lavandera who's covering the court martial. Ed, you were there in court today. Take us inside. What was it like?</s>ED LAVANDERA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Anderson, in many ways it was really intense. I think many people are anticipating to see what Major Nidal Hasan, how he was going to act, how he was going to behave, but it was the prosecutors that started off with an incredibly vivid and dramatic picture. Methodically going through the steps that Major Hasan took in this massacre. And you know, it was very powerful and poignant at many times the prosecutors talking about the screams of a pregnant victim who was dying, screaming, my baby, my baby, and then another witness describing how soon her voice went quiet, and that was the moment that she had died. So very powerful testimony and descriptions of what happened in those brief moments when this massacre took place.</s>COOPER: And I know Hasan is representing himself. He gave his opening statement today. It was relatively short. What does he even look like now? Because we're showing all these different pictures of him. Does he have a beard in court?</s>LAVANDERA: He does have a beard. And you know, we should point out here that the military officials here are being very strict about what kind of access we are able to see of Major Hasan. There is limited seating in the courtroom for news media that is lotteried off every day but his movements are not allowed to be photographed while we're here inside Fort Hood. He was brought to Fort Hood in on a helicopter. He's being kept at a county jail not too far away from here. We are not able to either photograph or even look at that helicopter taking off from the Army post here. So he is in a wheelchair. He is paralyzed from the waist down. He's very subdued. And it's almost, Anderson, like there's two different things going on in this courtroom. Prosecutors fighting for the death penalty in this case, and Major Hasan, essentially fighting his own war, which is to justify the killings of fellow soldiers and wounding more than 30 others.</s>COOPER: And it is incredible that he's going to be able to question the very people that he shot. And he offered to plead guilty both to the prosecutors and the judge. His offers were denied. Can you explain why?</s>LAVANDERA: Well, those are the rules of the code of military justice. And it is -- when someone is eligible for the death penalty, and that is what prosecutors are pursuing in this case, the defendant is not allowed to plead not guilty. They have to put on a not guilty defense, but it was really strange. The judge started off the day by saying that Major Nidal Hasan has pleaded guilty and not an hour later you saw Hasan there in the courtroom claiming that he was the shooter and the evidence will clearly point to all of that. So in many ways it was all kind of surreal. It doesn't seem like Major Hasan is interested in any way in defending his guilt or innocence. He seems bent on trying to justify what he had done.</s>COOPER: And how long is this expected to go on for?</s>LAVANDERA: Well, you know, it's interesting many people thought this could take several months but they went through, I think, close to a dozen witnesses today. Prosecution witnesses are, despite the way Major Hasan is handling his own defense, they seem -- the prosecution seems to be just going on as -- and they will put out everything. I would not be surprised if you hear from virtually every witness that was inside the room where the shooting started. You will hear all of that. They will continue to go on as if Major Hasan were putting on a worthy defense. So -- and Major Hasan didn't cross examine but I think had a couple of questions throughout the day so this might not take as long as many people expected.</s>COOPER: All right. Ed, thanks for your reporting. Now "Keeping Them Honest," the mentioned the story that you might not know about or might not like if you do. All this time, while he's been awaiting trial, Major Hasan has been drawing a paycheck, and get this, more than a quarter million he's made so far. That's the way the system works. Meantime, because the federal government for a number of reasons has refused to classify the massacre as an act of terrorism, shooting survivors say they can't take advantage of badly needed services or receive military honors. That's also how the system works. And critics say how it's failing to work for those who truly need it. Our Randi Kaye tonight is "Keeping Them Honest".</s>RANDI KAYE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Ten minutes. That's all it took for Major Nidal Hasan to kill 13 people and injured more than 30. November 5th, 2009, at Fort Hood Soldier Readiness Center. The chaos captured in this video obtained by ABC. Sgt. Shawn Manning on FOX News.</s>STAFF SGT. SHAWN MANNING, FORT HOOD SHOOTING VICTIM: I remember, you know, rapid and shooting as fast as he could possibly shoot.</s>KAYE: Hasan fired more than 100 rounds from two pistols. Hours later, the president made this promise to the victims.</s>BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: As commander in chief, there's no greater honor but also no greater responsibility for me than to make sure that the extraordinary men and women in uniform are properly cared for.</s>KAYE (on camera): Nearly four years later, survivors say they feel cast aside and they still wonder how the U.S. government could label this workplace violence instead of combat related terrorism. That designation means the victims have lower priority access to medical care and fewer financial benefits than those whose injuries are labeled combat related. (</s>Voice-over): Army Specialist Logan Burnett was shot three times during the attack. He spoke to</s>KXAS. SPC. LOGAN BURNETT, FORT HOOD SHOOTING VICTIM: The day that came out was the day the government looked at every single one of the victims of the Fort Hood shooting and spit in our faces.</s>KAYE: Sergeant Shawn Manning has lost tens of thousands of dollars in benefits.</s>MANNING: I was shot by a terrorist, and they don't want to call it an act of terrorism and deem my injuries combat related. I think it's just -- I mean, ridiculous.</s>KAYE: Civilian police officer Sergeant Kimberly Munley helped end the attack by shooting Major Hasan four times. Honored for her bravery at the State of the Union a couple of months later but now she tells ABC she feels betrayed by the president.</s>SGT. KIMBERLY MUNLEY, FORT HOOD POLICE, TOOK DOWN HASAN: If I were to see him again, again it's not about me, but I would just beg him to please take care of them.</s>KAYE (on camera): Why not classified the shooting at Fort Hood as a terrorist attack? The Department of Defense has said Hasan may not have been able to receive a fair trial had the U.S. indirectly declared him a terrorist and it could have opened the door for an appeal. But an attorney representing 150 victims in a civil suit against the Department of Defense and the FBI disagrees. He says at the time the U.S. government was looking to close Guantanamo Bay prison, home to hundreds of accused enemy combatants, so the idea of a terrorist attack by a U.S. soldier who is Muslim wasn't optimal. (</s>Voice-over): Witnesses say Hasan shouted, "God is great," in Arabic before opening fire and Hasan has said he acted to help defend the Taliban. That, lawyers for the victims, say is proof of a terror attack. They also point to the FBI's disclosure that it had intercepted communications between Hasan and U.S. born radical Muslim cleric, Anwar al-Awlaki, in Yemen. Meanwhile, Major Hasan, who has renounced his citizenship, is still on the military's payroll being paid more than $300,000 since the shooting. The Army can't stop paying him unless he's found guilty. Randi Kaye, CNN, New York.</s>COOPER: I want to dig deeper on that now with Virginia Republican Congressman Frank Wolf and retired sergeant, Howard Ray. Congress Wolf is co-sponsoring legislation on pay for alleged violent felons. Sergeant Ray was in the line of fire at Fort Hood and is credited with saving nine lives, six troops and three civilians that day. We spoke a short time ago.</s>COOPER: Congressman Wolf, you've introduced two bills related to this case. The second of which deals with Hasan's salary. I think a lot of people are stunned to learn that he's received around $300,000 in pay since the 2009 shooting. What would your bills do?</s>REP. FRANK WOLF (R), VIRGINIA: The bill would put the money in escrow for anyone charged like this and if they were found innocent they would receive the money. If they were guilty, they would not get the money because you should not be paying somebody, particularly in a case like this being involved in an act of terror.</s>COOPER: Sergeant Ray, do you agree with the congressman? I mean, do you think this guy Hasan should be getting his salary?</s>SGT. HOWARD RAY, RET., U.S. ARMY: Absolutely. When we have a capital offense like this, you know, that pay should be suspended. There is no reason, especially in a case like this, where there is really insurmountable evidence even before the case had even started. The pay should absolutely be withdrawn or at least held on to until the case is over.</s>COOPER: And Sergeant, also, I mean, I think a lot of viewers will be surprised to find out that the victims aren't eligible for Purple Hearts and can't receive all the benefits that come along with that.</s>RAY: Absolutely. And of course, a lot of that has to deal with, you know, the classification of this terroristic act. You know, the Department of Defense have said that this was just a mere workplace violence and, you know, I've heard that they cite the reason for a fair trial as their reason for doing that. But I don't think that's true at all. I mean, when we look at all the evidence that has been presented, even to this point, it's very clear and even through the words of the individual himself, this indeed was a terrorist act. It should be classified as such. So individuals like myself or others are not prevented from getting the treatment, medical care and Purple Hearts that they deserve.</s>COOPER: Congressman, I want to play something that then Homeland Security adviser John Brennan said in 2011. Let's play that.</s>JOHN BRENNAN, DEPUTY NATIONAL SECURITY ADVISER: And it's al Qaeda's adherence, individuals sometimes with little or no direct physical contact with al Qaeda, who have succumbed to its hateful ideology and who have engaged in or facilitated terrorist activities here in the United States. These misguided individuals are spurred on by the likes of al Qaeda's Adam Gadahn and Anwar Awlaki in Yemen, who speak English and preach violence and slip videos over the Internet. And we have seen the tragic results with the murder of military recruited in Arkansas two years ago and the attack on our servicemen and women in Fort Hood.</s>COOPER: And Congressman, I should point out he's now the head of the CIA. Do you think politics is at play here in terms of not declaring this an act of terrorism and rather workplace violence, because the Pentagon is essentially saying that it -- you know, there might -- by declaring act of terrorism before the trial, it may make the trial more difficult because Hasan could claim he can't get a fair trial.</s>WOLF: That's ridiculous. Mr. Leiter, who is head of the Counterterrorism Center, which was in McLean, in my district, initially called this an act of terror. This was a political decision and my committee funds the FBI. The FBI was told to use criminal statutes, not terrorist statutes. He hollered "Allahu Akbar" when he was shooting. Secondly, he was in direct contact with Anwar Awlaki. Awlaki was a radical imam who was killed by this administration by a drone missile. A drone missile killed him is actually an American citizen. There are connections with regard to Anwar Awlaki and the major. The fact is if you read the book "Dirty War" talks that Anwar Awlaki's father and mother wanted Anwar Awlaki to meet with their son, the major, because they thought he was drifting. This was a terrorist act, clearly, so I think there was politics involved in it.</s>COOPER: And Sergeant Ray, you -- I mean, you know better than anybody, you have no doubt this was a terrorist incident.</s>RAY: Absolutely, I mean, to call it anything else I think would be criminal.</s>COOPER: Congressman Wolf, a special report by the Senate Committee on Homeland Security titled "Ticking Time Bomb" detailed a number of warning signs about Hasan. What lessons do you think can be learned from this case to prevent another tragedy like this?</s>WOLF: Well, the military and the Department of Defense should not be politically correct. I have talked to some doctors who practiced with the major. They say he was advising young men and women who served in the military who were in Afghanistan and Iraq to turn themselves in as war criminals. The military and the Department of Defense knew that this person was being radicalized. He was being radicalized when he was at Walter Reed and they knew it. But I think they were very politically correct. If you even remember when the -- when this act took place, the head of the army made some very strange political correct statements. So when you see something like this, you got to deal with it when you see it.</s>COOPER: Yes, and I think that's going to stun a lot of people tonight. Congressman Wolf and Sergeant Ray, good to have you on. Thank you.</s>WOLF: Thanks so much.</s>RAY: Thank you.</s>COOPER: Well, let us know what you think. I'm tweeting about this right now @andersoncooper. We're talking about it on Twitter. Just head tonight, also a 360 exclusive. An interview with Bradley Manning's father. I speak to him about -- speaking out really for the first time since his son was convicted of leaking 750,000 pages of classified documents and videos to WikiLeaks. What does he say to those who call his son a traitor. Find out tonight. Also troubling new details tonight about the python that killed two young brothers just 4 and 6 years old.