Judge allows forced feeding of accused National Guard shooter

An Afghan national accused of ambushing two National Guard members while they were patrolling in the nation’s capital last year can be force-fed while in jail, a federal judge said Saturday.

The brief order from U.S. District Judge Amit Mehta allows the Bureau of Prisons (BOP) to provide “nonconsensual nutrition and medical treatment” to Rahmanullah Lakanwal while he is in custody following reports that he is refusing to eat.

“This order authorizes nonconsensual nasogastric tube feeding, intravenous feeding, and/or feeding through an already implanted gastrostomy tube as necessary to preserve defendant Rahmanullah Lakanwal’s life or to prevent a foreseeable deterioration in his condition that if not treated is likely to lead to death,” Mehta wrote.

Lakanwal was admitted to the hospital in July after U.S. Marshals became concerned about his well-being due to “his refusal to consume adequate nutrition for an extended period,” the Justice Department previously told the judge in court filings.

Mehta said during an emergency hearing in July that the suspect’s health had “deteriorated quite substantially” but suggested during a separate hearing less than a week later that his condition seemed “to be improving.”

Details regarding Lakanwal’s current condition were not immediately available. The Hill has reached out to his lawyers in the public defender’s office for an update.

The lifesaving care is set to continue “until adequate oral intake of food and liquid and adequate acceptance of medical treatment is achieved and defendant’s life is no longer threatened,” according to the judge’s order. It is expected to remain in effect until at least Oct. 28, when the Justice Department can seek an extension.

Lakanwal is accused of fatally shooting U.S. Army Spc. Sarah Beckstrom and wounding U.S. Air Force Staff Sgt. Andrew Wolfe near the Farragut Square Metro Station last November.

The two West Virginia National Guard members were deployed to the nation’s capital as part of the Trump administration’s crime crackdown, which has been extended through January 2029.

Beckstrom, 20, died on Thanksgiving from injuries sustained in the shooting. Wolfe was shot in the head and is set to undergo skull reconstructive surgery this week, his mother said in a Sunday video shared on Facebook.

“We are excited for this chapter, this part of the story to be closed,” she said. “Then we can really start moving in and knocking out the aphasia, which is the language processing disorder.”

Lakanwal, who was shot during the altercation before being taken into custody, has pleaded not guilty to 17 charges.

Federal prosecutors have not indicated whether they intend to pursue the death penalty, and Lakanwal’s lawyers appeared apprehensive during a recent court hearing about the government having access to his medical records while that is being considered.