Kelly Introduces Bill to Ban Public Broadcasts of Military Executions

Legislation would prohibit public broadcasts of military executions and prevent taxpayer dollars from being used to record or publicly distribute execution footage

Today, Arizona Senator Mark Kelly introduced the No Public Executions in America Act to prohibit the public broadcasting of military executions and prevent taxpayer dollars from being used to record or publicly distribute footage of executions carried out under federal law.

The legislation comes after Secretary Hegseth announced plans to publicly broadcast the execution of Nidal Hasan, a military prisoner who was sentenced to death for killing 13 people and wounding dozens more in the 2009 Fort Hood shooting. While President Trump has since reversed that decision following calls for him to do so, the bill establishes a permanent prohibition on publicly broadcasting military executions and bans the use of taxpayers' funds to broadcast federal executions.

"Livestreaming an execution is un-American and dangerous. It is the kind of thing we see with regimes like Iran and the Taliban in Afghanistan, and it won't make Americans any safer," said Kelly. "The No Public Executions in America Act will put a stop to this plan and any like it in the future."

Background:

The No Public Executions in America Act would prohibit federal officials and individuals acting under the authority of the Department of Defense from recording or publicly broadcasting executions conducted under the Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ) and ban federal funds to be used in the broadcasting of executions.

Specifically, the legislation would:

• Prohibit public broadcasts of military executions, including livestreaming, recording, publishing, or distributing execution footage.
• Prevent taxpayer dollars from being used to record or publicly distribute executions carried out under any federal law, including military commissions.

The legislation would apply to all executions carried out after the bill becomes law, regardless of when the death sentence was imposed or approved by the president.

Click here to read the full text of the bill.