Beard would bar Fort Hood suspect from courtroom

Beard would bar Fort Hood suspect from courtroom

FORT WORTH, Texas (AP) — A military judge says the Army psychiatrist charged in the deadly 2009 Fort Hood shooting rampage will watch his next hearing on closed-circuit television if he hasn’t shaved his new beard.

Maj. Nidal Hasan’s hearing was rescheduled for Tuesday after being delayed earlier this month when he appeared in court wearing the beard he’s grown in jail. Military officials aren’t saying if he’s since shaved. Growing a beard is a violation of Army regulations.

Hasan’s attorneys have said they’d seek an exception to the Army’s rule on religious grounds. Hasan is Muslim.

The judge, Col. Gregory Gross, is to consider several motions Tuesday, including whether to delay Hasan’s trial from August until December.

Hasan faces the death penalty if convicted in the shooting that killed 13 on the Texas Army post.