FORT HOOD, Texas (AP) _ The Army's highest legal branch has appointed a new judge to preside over the case of the Fort Hood shooting suspect.

U.S. Army Col. Tara Osborn was named Tuesday to head the case of Maj. Nidal Hasan. He faces the death penalty if convicted in the 2009 shootings that killed 13 and wounded more than two dozen on the Texas Army post.

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces on Monday ousted the previous judge, Col. Gregory Gross, saying he appeared biased against Hasan. The court tossed out Gross' order to have Hasan's beard forcibly shaved before his court-martial.

Army spokesman Maj. S. Justin Platt said he didn't know when Osborn would arrive at Fort Hood. It's unclear when hearings in the case will resume.

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