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US military prepares for first execution in over 60 years as Trump can now approve former Army major’s death sentence
The US Army is preparing for the possible executions of four prisoners on military death row, in a move that could result in the first US military execution in more than six decades.
An internal planning document reportedly instructs Army officials to prepare for the executions should President Donald Trump approve the death sentences of those allegedly involved in the incident.
US military reveals plans for potential executions
The document, named "Operation Resolute Justice", was issued internally in February and outlines plans for prisoners to be transferred from the US Disciplinary Barracks at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, to the federal execution facility in Terre Haute, Indiana, with the facility used for a series of federal executions during Trump's first presidency.
The US military has not carried out an execution since 1961, when Army Pvt. John Bennett was put to death after being convicted of raping and attempting to murder an 11-year-old girl in Austria.
The Army's own legal journal confirmed in May 2026 that Bennett's execution remains the most recent military death sentence carried out.
Army spokesperson Cynthia Smith said preparation for a potential execution forms part of the military's routine contingency planning.
"Exercises regarding this operation have been conducted regularly for the past 20 years. These drills are a standard component of our continued planning and preparation if the president approves a death sentence," Smith said.
She added that the Army had not received a specific order from Trump to proceed with an execution, but the internal plan reportedly directs several Army organizations to prepare for and facilitate executions "no later than 150 days from the date of presidential approval of the death sentences".
It also sets out proposed timelines for planning meetings and procedures that would be followed if the president authorizes an execution.
Although military courts can impose death sentences, presidential approval is required before a military execution can take place.
However, the White House did not respond to a request for comment on whether Trump intends to approve any of the military death sentences, with the inquiry referred to the Army.
The plan also reportedly covers media arrangements, including provisions for journalists to witness an execution, with the development coming after Trump reinstated and expanded the use of the federal death penalty during his second term.
On his first day back in office, Trump signed an executive order directing the Justice Department to pursue capital punishment more aggressively, following the Biden administration's pause on federal executions.
There had also been no federal executions during Barack Obama's presidency. Obama commuted the death sentence of military death-row prisoner Dwight Loving to life imprisonment without parole, after Loving had been convicted of murdering two soldiers in 1988.
Soldiers currently await death penalty and Trump's approval
In the military system, four prisoners are currently on death row, and the Army's May 2026 legal review identifies them as Ronald Gray, Hasan Akbar, Timothy Hennis and Nidal Hasan.
One of the men whose sentence could potentially move forward is former Army psychiatrist Maj. Nidal Hasan.
Hasan was convicted and sentenced to death after the 2009 Fort Hood shooting in Texas, in which 13 people were killed and 32 others were wounded. The Army's legal journal confirms that he was convicted by a general court-martial in 2013 and sentenced to death.
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said in September that he would seek Hasan's execution, saying, "I am 100% committed to ensuring the death penalty is carried out for Nidal Hasan. The victims and survivors deserve justice without delays."
According to the Army's legal review, Hegseth formally requested that Trump sign the death warrant approving and ordering Hasan's execution in September 2025.
The other prisoners include former Army specialist Ronald Gray, who served as a cook with the 82nd Airborne Division at Fort Bragg, North Carolina, and was also convicted in 1988 of premeditated murder, attempted murder, and three counts of rape.
President George W. Bush approved Gray's execution in July 2008 and a date was initially set for December that year, but a federal judge subsequently halted the execution, with that stay eventually lifted by another judge in 2016.
Gray remains the only current military death-row prisoner whose execution has previously received presidential approval.
Another prisoner is former Master Sgt. Timothy Hennis, who was convicted of raping a woman and killing her and her two daughters.
The fourth prisoner is former Army Sgt. Hasan Akbar, who was convicted of murdering two officers and attempting to murder 16 others in 2003, and was subsequently sentenced to death by a general court-martial in 2005.
Should Trump approve the execution of any of these prisoners, it would mark the first US military execution since Pvt. Bennett in 1961, ending a gap of more than 60 years