Wednesday, August 15, 2012

The trial for an Army psychiatrist charged in the deadly Fort Hood shooting has been put on hold while an appeals court considers his objections to being forcibly shaved.

All court proceedings for Maj. Nidal Hasan were put on hold Wednesday. He had been scheduled to enter a plea.

According to a defense motion, Hasan indicated he wanted to plead guilty for religious reasons. Hasan is an American-born Muslim.

But the judge, Col. Gregory Gross, said he could not accept a guilty plea on the 13 charges of premeditated murder.

The trial that was to start Monday will be on hold until the Army appeals court rules on Hasan's objection to being shaved.

Gross had previously ordered Hasan to shave his beard or be forcibly shaved before trial.