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Megyn Kelly Promotes Dubious Assertion That Ft. Hood Shooter Will Psych Out Witnesses – And That They Might Lynch Him In Return

Posted by Ellen -7859.80pc on June 04, 2013 · Flag

Megyn Kelly’s “fair and balanced” way of covering the news that Major Nidal Hasan, aka the “Fort Hood Shooter,” had been granted the right to represent himself at his upcoming trial was to promote the idea, along with one of Hasan’s victims, that he had been granted some kind of special privilege. That was bad enough given that Kelly is an attorney and should know better. But she also helped promote the victim’s dubious argument that, thanks to the ruling, Hasan’s psychiatric credentials would allow him to play some kind of mind games with witnesses and trial watchers so as to “push those buttons” that would trigger the victims’ PTSD and “rally extreme jihadists” during the trial. To top it off, she didn’t mind when her guest hinted he and others might lynch Hasan if that happened.

Kelly surely knows that the real issue with self-representation is that it puts Hasan at a disadvantage. For example, The Guardian wrote:

After questioning Hasan for about an hour, the judge, Colonel Tara Osborn, ruled that Hasan was mentally competent to represent himself and understands “the disadvantage of self-representation”. She repeatedly urged him to reconsider his request, noting that the lead prosecutor has more than 20 years of experience and that Hasan will be held to the same standards as all attorneys regarding courtroom rules and military law.

“You’ve made that quite clear,” Hasan said after the judge asked if he understood that representing himself was not “a good idea”.

But Kelly, whose show airs during what is supposed to be part of Fox’s “objective” news lineup, pretended that Hasan had been granted some kind of edge. Check out her “objective” first question to her guest:

Your reaction to this news that this man, accused of shooting you and killing so many others will now have the opportunity to give openings, to give closing arguments and to sit you down on the witness stand and cross examine you.

You really need to hear her say it to get just how full of indignation she was, or pretended to be.

Let me say my heart goes out to her guest, retired Sergeant Alonzo Lunsford. He was seriously wounded in the attack and is not an attorney or a news person. There’s no reason to expect or demand that he have the same amount of  - or even any – distance or professionalism in the matter. So I don’t blame him for saying:

Yes, it’s a travesty. And Major Hasan is trying to make a mockery out of our justice system… and our way of life. I feel as if he’s going to use the trial as a platform to try to rally other extreme jihadists to try to react in a negative manner. As well as that by him being a psychiatrist, he knows what buttons to push to trigger our PTSD and TBI. But what he fails to realize is that we are smarter people so my being an NCO myself, I’m not going to let him push those buttons because I will maintain my military bearing.

But Kelly has no excuse. If nothing else, a judge would almost certainly exclude any testimony designed to “rally other extreme jihadists” or push any PTSD buttons. However, she gave Lunsford’s theory undeserved credibility by responding:

Good for you, Sergeant, and that’s a good point though, that I hadn’t considered that, (Nadal’s) psychiatric background and how he might use it to the detriment of the witnesses he’s going to cross examine.

Don’t shut your jaw just yet, though. Lunsford went on to say, “Whatever happens to Major Hasan, be it that he is convicted of his crime and even… if he pushes a button to trigger one of us to physically react on him - in words that he would understand, ‘imshallah,’ meaning God’s will. So he would get what’s coming to him.”

Kelly ignored that her guest had just hinted at lynching someone. Instead, she said, her voice all sympathetic, “You know, you were just doing your job that day when suddenly you felt a bullet hit you in the left side of your head and then more bullets pounded into your back. …Do you feel like you can sit on that witness stand, look him in the eye just as you did moments before he shot you, and tell that story?”

Lusnford continued to make vaguely threatening utterances and Kelly continued to ignore them and treat him as a credible expert.

Shame on her.

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Kent Brockman commented 2013-06-06 01:10:44 -0400 · Flag
Fux Nuze – Where UGLY “reporting” finds a Happy Home
Lakeview Greg commented 2013-06-05 14:03:30 -0400 · Flag
And yes, I have an extremely low tolerance for asshat psychiatrists.
Lakeview Greg commented 2013-06-05 13:52:50 -0400 · Flag
And yeah, I would lump Ablow in there with Hasan. The only difference is Ablow has not gone out and shot a bunch of people. He shows his problems through the vast guano-filled cave that is Fox News.
Lakeview Greg commented 2013-06-05 13:48:59 -0400 · Flag
Don’t give Hasan more credit than he is due. Gotta remember, this guy is a nut. A shrink who let his religious beliefs cloud his judgement and training. How he snuck through the system is beyond me, but he did. Frankly, his religious choice has very little to do with it. People like this can fall into any faith as just reading the news shows. And sometimes religion has nothing to do with it, just a perceived fear of persecution by something or someone, like people who think the TV or computer or their microwave oven is sending them messages. A nut is a nut is a nut, only the triggers of bizarre behavior change.
Kortez Tk commented 2013-06-05 07:22:29 -0400 · Flag
Megyn Kelly is Roger Ailes’s woman. She does what he wants and for that reason is in good with Fox and is so reprehensible, despite her morality play with Dobbs and Erickson. Never think Kelly has a decency streak within her!
Joseph West commented 2013-06-05 02:24:17 -0400 · Flag
Ellen posted

“Let me say my heart goes out to her guest, retired Sergeant Alonzo Lunsford. He was seriously wounded in the attack and is not an attorney or a news person. There’s no reason to expect or demand that he have the same amount of – or even any – distance or professionalism in the matter. So I don’t blame him for saying:

Yes, it’s a travesty. And Major Hasan is trying to make a mockery out of our justice system… and our way of life. I feel as if he’s going to use the trial as a platform to try to rally other extreme jihadists to try to react in a negative manner. As well as that by him being a psychiatrist, he knows what buttons to push to trigger our PTSD and TBI. But what he fails to realize is that we are smarter people so my being an NCO myself, I’m not going to let him push those buttons because I will maintain my military bearing."

Ellen, I’m sorry but the man’s LAST sentence is “I will maintain my military bearing” yet, given his comment to Megyn, he wasn’t able to do so on a national TV program where he’s NOT facing hostile questioning. And, as to “professionalism,” he’s military. They’re expected to maintain a certain level of professionalism in every aspect of their lives. It may not be the same as would be expected of an attorney or a news person (neither term really applies to Megyn Kelly, either) but it is a type of professionalism nonetheless. If I were the military prosecutor in this case, I would avoid putting Lunsford on the stand because I think he’d do the case more harm than good.
Janet Tuhey commented 2013-06-04 22:27:27 -0400 · Flag
AAP, She doesn’t have to do anything. She’s pretty and blonde, that’s all they need to hold on to. Of course, they are holding onto themselves at the time
truman commented 2013-06-04 18:46:54 -0400 · Flag
Magpie KKKelly is as good a lawyer as “Dr” Allblow is a psychiatrist. Neither should be ever allowed to practice again outside the Fux Noise studios.
Lakeview Greg commented 2013-06-04 18:32:57 -0400 · Flag
Well, not the whacky issues but the ones about using the platform to start some political ranting crap. That was addressed. Not the “evil eye” stuff Kelly seems to be blabbering about.
Lakeview Greg commented 2013-06-04 18:31:19 -0400 · Flag
Hmm…guess Megyn skipped the part about the judge and lawyers talking about just those issues and how the judge said it will not be tolerated, however, the defense has a right to present its case. Besides that, Hasan is in a wheelchair because of his injuries and it is possible he may not be physically up to the rigors of self-defense at trial.

I feel for the victim.
Kelly’s a mouthpiece.
NewsHounds posted about Megyn Kelly Promotes Dubious Assertion That Ft. Hood Shooter Will Psych Out Witnesses – And That They Might Lynch Him In Return on NewsHounds' Facebook page 2013-06-04 18:02:11 -0400
Proof that Megyn Kelly will promote any crackpot extremism if she thinks it will grant her Fox News points.








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