U.S. District Chief Judge Royce C. Lamberth ruled Tuesday that Choi’s attorney should have raised the issue of harsher treatment before trial during pretrial motions and therefore cannot use at trial as a defense.

Dan Choi

U. S. District Chief Judge Royce C. Lamberth ruled Tuesday that Choi’s attorney should have raised the issue of harsher treatment before trial during pretrial motions and therefore cannot use at trial as a defense.

Prosecutors had appealed an earlier ruling by U. S. District Court Magistrate Judge John Facciola, which was in agreement with Choi’s lawyer who had argued that his client was being treated more harshly. Choi and 12 other activists were arrested November 15 of last year for handcuffing themselves to the White House fence to protest “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell."

Choi faces a possible sentence of six months in jail or a $5,000 fine if convicted on a misdemeanor charge of disobeying a lawful order to disperse from the fence.

"In a tense exchange between U.S. District Court Magistrate Judge John Facciola, prosecutor Angela George announced she would file a request for a writ of mandamus or legal challenge before the court’s chief judge to contest Facciola’s decision to allow Choi’s attorneys to pursue a vindictive prosecution defense.

[...]

Such a defense would allow Choi’s attorneys to pursue documents and subpoena witnesses that Choi’s supporters say could possibly link the alleged effort to go after Choi for a harsher prosecution to higher-level government officials, including officials at the White House.

Defense attorney Robert Feldman called Facciola’s finding that the defense presented a “prima facie case” that a vindictive prosecution occurred a “vindication” of Choi’s longstanding contention that his arrest and prosecution violated his constitutional right to free speech.

Washington Blade

Choi is a West Point graduate who was discharged from the U.S. Army under the now repealed policy after he revealed his sexual orientation on-air during an interview on MSNBC's "The Rachel Maddow Show" in 2009.

“Action and sacrifice speak much more loudly than the best crafted, eloquent speech.”

Lt. Dan Choi is a West Point graduate, Iraq War veteran and Arabic linguist. He was the nation’s leading activist for the repeal of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” (DADT).

Choi was born in Orange County, Calif., and raised in an evangelical Korean-American household. His father is a Baptist minister; his mother is a nurse. Inspired by the film “Saving Private Ryan,” Choi decided to attend West Point.

After graduating from West Point with degrees in Arabic linguistics and environmental engineering, Choi served as an Army infantry officer in Iraq. In 2008, he transferred from active duty to the Army National Guard. That same year, Choi and a group of West Point alumni founded Knights Out, an organization supporting the rights of LGBT soldiers.

In 2009, Choi appeared on the “The Rachel Maddow Show” and said something that would change his life forever: “I am gay.” Within a month, the U.S. Army notified him that he was being discharged under “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell.”
When he received his discharge papers, Choi knew he had to fight back. He wrote an open letter asking President Obama to repeal the policy and reinstate him, calling his discharge “a slap in the face.”

Choi sent his West Point graduation ring to Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid. It was a reminder to the senator of a promise he made to repeal the ban on gays and lesbians in the military.

Choi became the leading activist and national spokesman for the repeal of DADT. His media savvy drew attention to the issue. In 2010, he was arrested three times for handcuffing himself to the White House fence during protests.

Later in 2010, Choi was invited to the White House to witness President Obama signing the bill repealing “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” into law. Afterward, Senator Reid invited Choi to his office, where he returned Choi’s West Point ring. “The next time I get a ring from a man,” Choi responded, “I expect it to be for full, equal American marriage.”

Choi continues to advocate for LGBT civil rights and for veterans’ health benefits. He is a graduate student at Harvard University. He resides in New York City.

Brody Levesque

Lt. Dan Choi, with Blade reporter Lou Chibbaro Jr.

In a tense exchange between U.S. District Court Magistrate Judge John Facciola, prosecutor Angela George announced she would file a request for a writ of mandamus or legal challenge before the court’s chief judge to contest Facciola’s decision to allow Choi’s attorneys to pursue a vindictive prosecution defense.

Facciola responded by saying he would suspend the trial for 10 days to give George, an assistant U.S. Attorney, time to prepare a motion for a writ of mandamus and to provide Chief Judge Royce Lamberth time to consider it.

William Miller, a spokesperson for the U.S. Attorney’s office, confirmed that George would seek the writ of mandamus from Lamberth. But he declined to comment further on the matter, saying his office never comments on pending cases.

If Lamberth grants the request, legal observers say Facciola would likely be directed not to allow Choi’s attorneys to pursue a vindictive prosecution defense. Should he turn down the request, Facciola would be free to allow the vindictive prosecution defense to move forward.

Such a defense would allow Choi’s attorneys to pursue documents and subpoena witnesses that Choi’s supporters say could possibly link the alleged effort to go after Choi for a harsher prosecution to higher-level government officials, including officials at the White House.

Defense attorney Robert Feldman called Facciola’s finding that the defense presented a “prima facie case” that a vindictive prosecution occurred a “vindication” of Choi’s longstanding contention that his arrest and prosecution violated his constitutional right to free speech.

The clash between George and Facciola came on the third day of the trial and one day after Choi testified for more than two hours as the lead witness for his own defense, saying he was exercising his First Amendment right to free speech at the White House protest.

In response to Feldman’s questions, Choi testified at length about his role as a civil rights activist for LGBT people and for gays in the military. He told how he models his actions on the black civil rights movement of the 1960s, including the famous lunch counter sit-ins at a Woolworth’s department store in Greensboro, N.C., that challenged segregation laws.

Choi testified that a series of three White House protests against the “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” law on gays in the military, in which he and other activists were arrested at the White House fence, were based on the same principle used in the black civil rights movement for exercising a constitutional right of free speech.

“I believe that was a transformative moment,” he said of the White House protests.

George objected repeatedly to Choi’s dialogue on civil rights, saying it was not relevant to the case at hand. To the amazement of some courtroom observers, Facciola overruled her objections almost every time she raised them.

In her cross-examination of Choi, George pressed the former Army officer, West Point graduate and combat veteran in the Iraq war to respond to the charge that he disobeyed a lawful order to disperse from the White House fence.

Choi responded by citing a provision in U.S. military law pertaining to unlawful orders.

“If you are given an order that is unlawful or immoral, it is your duty to disobey that order,” he said.

Feldman and defense co-counsel Norman Kent told reporters covering the trial that Choi’s defense is based, in part, on the premise that prosecutors singled him out for a harsher prosecution when they charged him with violating a federal regulation pertaining to White House protests and demonstrations along the White House fence and sidewalk.

The federal regulation carries a penalty of six months in jail and a possible $5,000 fine. The two attorneys said people arrested in virtually all other White House demonstrations in recent memory – including Choi and other activists in similar protests in April and May of 2010 – were charged under a D.C. municipal ordinance they compare to a traffic violation that carries no prison sentence.

In his testimony on Tuesday, Choi said he believes prosecutors decided to invoke the far more harsh federal regulation against him in the Nov. 15, 2010 case, which he now faces at trial, because of his role as a gay former military officer who is “standing up for my beliefs.”

Choi stated in his testimony that thousands of people appeared to have violated the same regulation with which he was charged when they gathered at the White House earlier this year to celebrate President Barack Obama’s announcement that accused terrorist Osama bin Laden had been killed in a U.S. military operation in Pakistan.

Choi and his attorneys noted that dozens of the revelers that evening clung to the White House fence and did not move back and forth along the sidewalk, as required under the ordinance for a demonstration, when they cheered and expressed support for the president’s role in bin Laden’s capture and death.

Continue reading at the Washington Blade →

Choi has reportedly rejected a plea deal offered by federal prosecutors, according to a report by Metro Weekly.

Under the offer, the government would agree to dismiss the charge against Choi as long as he avoided arrest for four months.

"They made us a new offer. We laughed," Choi said on Friday, via Twitter.

Choi was in court this week to answer to a charge of disobeying police orders to leave the area in front of the White House during the November 2010 protest.

"The right to speak on behalf of those who cannot speak for themselves is more than a privilege," said Choi, his voice rising with emotion during a cross-examination that turned confrontational at times. "It's a moral responsibility and I take that seriously."

Choi said he could not recall details of his arrest, but likened the scene to a "combat zone" and recalled being struck by what he considered to be aggressive and demeaning tactics by the U.S. Park Police officers who showed up.

[...]

He said was flabbergasted he was on trial in the first place when people went to the White House to cheer the U.S. military raid that led to the death of terror mastermind Osama bin Laden. He said those people gathered at the same fence but never faced any sanctions.

“What’s the difference?” Choi demanded ... “You have not given me a reason why my free speech should be curtailed and their free speech should be amplified.”

Associated Press, via The Washington Post

During the protest, a total of 13 people handcuffed themselves to the fence, chanting “let us serve.” The remaining 12 demonstrators accepted a plea deal where they agreed to plead guilty but serve no jail time if they are not re-arrested within a certain time.

Choi, and Iraq war veteran, announced he is gay on MSNBC's "The Rachel Maddow Show" on March 19, 2009, prompting the U.S. Army to initiate discharge proceedings. His discharge became effective on June 29, 2010.

Since outing himself, Choi has become a vocal opponent of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” -- he is one of more than 14,000 servicemen and women who have been discharged because of their sexual orientation. The ban has since been repealed and scheduled to formally end on Sept 20, 2011.

If convicted, Choi could face up to six months in jail and a fine.

The colorful balloon-festooned barge flying the flags from the several branches of the Dutch military and sponsored by the Dutch Defense Ministry, sailed by the hundreds of thousands of spectators that lined the canal.

Watch:

Along with the men and women saluting the enthusiastic crowds, was American Gay Activist Dan Choi, a former U.S. Army officer discharged under the U.S. Defense Departments now repealed "Don't Ask-Don't Tell" policy, and an officer from the British Royal Navy, Lieutenant Commander Mandy McBain, who faced dismissal 10 years ago when she was reported and investigated for being a lesbian before open service was legalized in the British defense forces.

McBain now heads the Royal Navy's LGBTQ forum.

The Associated Press reported:

The parade, watched by hundreds of thousands of spectators lining the Prinsengracht canal, capped a weeklong festival of around 300 parties and events. It included the popular "Drag Queen Olympics" with contests like the stiletto race and the long-distance handbag toss.

U.S. and British activists sailed with Dutch generals and other senior officers — some gay and others showing solidarity — among some 80 military and ministry civilian personnel.

Unlike the U.S. military, gays have openly served in Dutch units since 1974, and for 25 years have had a department within the ministry that minds their interests, the Foundation for Homosexuals in the Armed Forces.

Still, gay servicemen say having their own presentation in the famed floating parade marked "a huge step forward" in a country already noted for sexual equality.

The foundation had been denied permission for several years to join the event, although in the last two years soldiers were allowed to participate in military dress on other boats.

"The political leaders thought it was not appropriate to wear a uniform at this kind of parade," said army Maj. Peter Kees Hamstra, a foundation spokesman. "This shows everyone that the climate is changing," he said.

Hamstra said 6 to 8 percent of the Dutch military are gay or lesbian -- about the same as in the general population.

via AFP

U.S. gay rights activist Dan Choi arrested in Moscow

Moscow police spokesman, Maxim Kolosvetov, told Russian news agencies the 18 gay activists and 16 counter-demonstrators were arrested near Manezhnaya Square and Aleksandrovsky Garden, a short distance from the Kremlin.

Kolosvetov noted that separate groups of Ultra-Orthodox Christians and anti-gay demonstrators also fought with the Gay Rights activists as well as with police and the ministry troops. According to Kolosvetov, individuals were not targeted due to their sexual-orientation.

American LGBT rights activists Andy Thayer from Chicago, and Dan Choi, from New York, were confirmed as having been arrested, along with prominent British LGBT activist Peter Tatchell and French gay rights advocate Louis-Georges Tin.

Nikolai Alexeyev, the leader of Russia’s gay rights movement, did not attend, having suffered an injury to his foot during a television debate Thursday.

Alekseev, who had organized Saturday's protest in defiance of a ban imposed by the Moscow city authorities, told media outlets that the demonstration was aimed at connecting gay rights with the Soviet Union's stand against Germany in World War II, which remains a cornerstone of Russian national pride.

"The demonstration ban is particularly shocking because during the Second World War, Muscovites stood against the Nazis who thought to exterminate Jews, homosexuals and Communists, but now the mayor of Moscow is colluding with new-Nazis," said Tatchell, who has taken part in previous demonstrations in Moscow.

City officials denied gay rights activists permission to stage a parade on May 28, referring to the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms of November 4, 1950, which states that the right to freedom of peaceful assembly can be restricted in the interests of public order and protection of the rights and freedoms of other people.

Although homosexuality was decriminalized in post-Soviet Russia, anti-gay sentiment is high and Russian authorities justify the bans on the grounds of trying to prevent fights.

Activists also tried to hold a demonstration at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier outside the Kremlin and later outside the mayor's office.

Dan Choi

Dan Choi, the high profile gay rights activist and Iraq war veteran discharged last year under “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,” has received a bill for $2,500 (PDF), which the federal government claims is the "unearned portion" of his re-enlistment bonus.

And Choi's response: "I refuse to pay a cent."

In 2008, Choi was paid a $10,000 bonus for enlisting in the National Guard for three years. Now that he has been discharged under the military's ban on openly gay service members, the Defense Department says he owes $2,500 for failing "to satisfactorily complete that assigned term," according to a military spokesman.

As Choi sees it, his involuntary discharge came from an "unethical policy" and refuses to repay that money.

"It would be easy to pay the $2500 bill and be swiftly done with this diseased chapter of my life, where I sinfully deceived and tolerated self-hatred under Don’t Ask Don’t Tell," Choi wrote in a letter this week to President Barack Obama.

"My obligations to take a stand, knowing all the continued consequences of my violations, are clear. I refuse to pay your claim."

According to the demand letter, if Choi did not pay his debt within 30 days, the Department said it could refer his account to a private collection agency, or seek legal action through the Justice Department, and report the delinquency to credit bureaus.

Tracy Thorne

What the extremists never understood was that "Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell" was their movement’s death knell. This bitter fight elevated gay rights to a national issue for the first time in history.

Prior to 1993, discussions about LGBT people were usually spoken in hushed tones. Suddenly, gay people were photographed on the cover of magazines, quoted in the "A Section" of newspapers, and interviewed on television news programs (not just the daytime talk shows). The nation was introduced to honorable role models such as Tracy Thorne, the Top Gun pilot with movie star looks, (pictured) and Vietnam Bronze Star recipient Grethe Cammermeyer.

The national March on Washington occurred at roughly the same time, offering an opportunity for thousands of people, emboldened by the gays in the military debate, to come out of the closet in a safe and inspiring atmosphere.

Up until that moment, the public, the media, and religious institutions had decided to render gay people invisible or portrayed them as sinful circus acts. There was virtually no effort to show homosexuals as multi-dimensional people who led complete, fulfilling lives.

The first "Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell" loss was actually a victory (except for the 14,000 brave gay troops who were fired) because it destroyed the taboo of homosexuality. At that moment, LGBT people became an identifiable group to mainstream Americans and were firmly ingrained in public consciousness.

Seventeen years later, the scare tactics of the opposition were rendered ineffective because people had friends and family members who were openly gay. Even the majority of the troops said they thought they had served with gay service members.

LGBT activist, Lt. Dan Choi

This time around, our gay spokespeople were seen as dignified and patriotic, while the opposition appeared freakish, paranoid, and melodramatic.

America looked at our opponents and asked, “What are
you so scared of? Your fears are misplaced and, quite frankly, weird.”

There was one striking difference in this year’s tussle. In 1993, it was the politicians who were trying to get out in front of public opinion. In 2010, two-thirds of the public was squarely in favor of repealing "Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell," yet many elected officials were bucking the views of their constituents to appease anti-gay special interests.

The unsettling disconnect between the majority of Americans and some members of Congress -– overwhelmingly Republican -- who kowtow to hardcore litmus test voters, remains a real problem that will be exacerbated in 2011 when Republicans take over the House. Indeed, passing the bill took a massive lobbying effort, which included Washington insiders and new direct action groups. The legislation only made it through at the last possible moment, flaring tempers and fraying nerves.

President Bill Clinton’s painful experience with gays in the military led Obama to be overly cautious, almost killing repeal efforts. His go slow approach was frustrating and, at times, infuriating. But, in the end, he will be judged by what happens on his watch -- and his efforts just earned him an upgrade from a Casio to a Rado.

To get the Rolex, he will have to sign a law prohibiting employment discrimination and abolish the odious Defense of Marriage Act.

Obama signs 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell' repeal.

Still, the President did enough to temporarily quell bubbling anger in the LGBT community, while earning himself a degree of trust. He said he would end this heinous policy -– and he did.

Few people will remember the details and history will celebrate the signing ceremony, which signaled a major victory for the LGBT movement and the Obama administration.

However, expectations will be higher now that the ghost of "Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell" has been slain.

The integration of openly gay soldiers will prove to be a non-event, (like gay people marrying in 5 states) giving wavering Democrats and moderate Republicans few excuses not to vote for equality in the future.

As for our foes, they will be in disarray and have to live with the inconvenient fact that their gloom and doom scenarios never came to pass. And, they will soon have to watch their worst nightmare come to fruition, as heroic openly gay and lesbian soldiers stand on elevated platforms to receive medals for saving lives in the heat of battle.

It is telling that the week ended with former president Jimmy Carter, an observant evangelical Christian, saying he thought America would soon be ready for a gay president.

With this week’s historic victory, suddenly anything looks possible.

About the Author:

Choi, an Iraq war veteran discharged under "Don't Ask, Don't Tell," gave Sen. Reid his West Point ring with the agreement that it would be returned after the ban on openly gay service members was repealed. On Wednesday, just one day after President Barack Obama signed the repeal into law, Reid invited Choi to his office, where he returned the ring.

Moments after the meeting, Choi tweeted, "The next time I get a ring from a man, I expect it to be for full, equal, American marriage."

"I was involuntarily committed to the Brockton MA Veterans Hospital Psychiatric Ward on Friday Morning after experiencing a breakdown and anxiety attack," Choi wrote in an e-mail Tuesday to blogger Pam Spaulding, editor of Pam's House Blend.

Choi, an Iraq veteran, has become the most visible face in the fight to repeal the U.S. ban on openly gay service members.

BRODY LEVESQUE

The Obama administration is coming under fire for its defense of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" by successfully petitioning the Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals this week for an emergency stay of U.S. District Court Judge Virginia Phillip's injunction issued Tuesday against the policy.

Appearing on CNN's morning show on Wednesday, White House Special Presidential Advisor Valerie Jarrett said:

"You know what, the Justice Department is required to defend the law of the land. Believe me, we wish there were another way because the President has been so clear.

And I think there are many members of the gay community who actually understand this and who are working with us to try to put pressure on Congress to repeal it. It’s clear that the vast majority of American people think that it should not be the law. And we are determined to have Congress revoke it. But we have to go through that orderly process."

Prominent Gay activist Dan Choi, also appearing on CNN Wednesday, renounced Jarrett's statement and then declared that the position of the White House had made him feel that he could not trust the president and his advisers, and as a result Choi told CNN, he would not vote for him:

Ted Olson

Fueling the discontent and perceptions that the White House was playing politics as usual with the Gay and Lesbian community was the observation made to ABC News after the Ninth Circuit Court granted the stay, is this statement from former U. S. Solicitor General Ted Olson, who served under President George W. Bush, and is now one of two attorney's representing the plaintiff's in California's Prop 8 case also now before the 9th Circuit Court:

"I don't know what is going through the [Obama] administration's thought process on 'don't ask, don't tell,'" Olson said. "It would be appropriate for them to say 'the law has been deemed unconstitutional, we are not going to seek further review of that."

Olson was referring to the fact that no statutory or constitutional provisions requires the Department of Justice to appeal a ruling striking down a federal law as unconstitutional. But the executive branch has traditionally continued legal defense when "a reasonable argument can be made in [the law's] support," according to DOJ guidelines.

The policy is designed to honor the spirit of the independent branches of government: Congress passes laws, presidents sign them, and only courts can ultimately decide whether or not they are constitutional.

In her formal ruling late Tuesday, U.S. District Judge Virginia Phillips said the government failed to meet its burden to obtain a stay, and faulted Justice Department attorneys for waiting until the last minute to present arguments about "difficulties" her injunction would create by effectively repealing the 17-year-old ban on openly gay service members.

"Defendants argue invalidation of a statute 'irreparably injures the Government and itself constitutes sufficient grounds for a stay.'

"Defendants have not shown, however, a likelihood they will suffer irreparable harm. As noted above, the injunction requires Defendants to cease investigating and discharging service members pursuant to the Act. ... Furthermore, Defendants merely conclude, without explanation, that 'confusion and uncertainty' will result if the injunction remains in place. Thus, Defendants have failed to establish they are likely to suffer irreparable injury if a stay is not granted."

[Complete ruling here (PDF).]

The Defense Department, anticipating the unfavorable ruling, and had already instructed its recruiters for the first time to start accepting applications from enlistees who acknowledge they are gay.

Pentagon spokeswoman Cynthia Smith said Tuesday recruiters had been given top-level guidance to accept applicants who say they are gay, but were also instructed to caution recruits that the policy is not final and could be reversed at any time if the ruling is eventually appealed or if a higher court grants a stay.

Dan Choi, a gay rights activist and Iraq War veteran who was booted from the New York Army National Guard after he came out, went to a military recruitment center in Times Square on Tuesday to begin the process to re-enlist.

Elaine Donnelly, president of the Center for Military Readiness, said the Pentagon was making "a big mistake" in accepting openly gay recruits. The military should have allowed court appeals to resolve the issue before acting, she said.

There's no immediate comment from the Justice Department, but government lawyers are expected to move quickly to seek a stay from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit.

On Sept. 9, Phillips ruled that the "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy implemented under President Clinton in 1993 was unconstitutional, as it infringed on the constitutional rights of free speech and due process.

On Oct. 12, she issued a worldwide injunction ordering the U.S. military to cease enforcement of the ban.

In a telephone call from his battalion commander on Thursday morning, Choi was notified of his honorable discharge, coming almost a year and a half after he came out on national television.

Choi

Choi issued this statement:

"This morning I received notification of my honorable discharge from the army under "Don't Ask, Don't Tell." After 11 years since beginning my journey at West Point and after 17 months of serving openly as an infantry officer this is both an infuriating and painful announcement.

"But my service continues. To all those veterans who have endured similar trials and injustices or prematurely ended their military service because of the unjust policy: our fight has only begun.

"The true honor and dignity of service does not come from a piece of paper, a pension or paycheck, a rank or status; only an unflinching commitment to improve the lives of others can determine the nature of one's service. From the first moment we put on our nation's uniform and swore our solemn oath, we committed ourselves to fight for freedom and justice; to defend our constitution and put the needs of others before our own. This is not an oath that I intend to abandon. Doing so at such a time, or remaining silent when our family and community members are fired or punished for who they truly are would be an unequivocal moral dereliction that tarnishes the honor of the uniform and insults the meaning of America."

Choi's discharge order here (PDF).

Since outing himself, Choi has become a vocal opponent of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell." In March, he criticized Defense Secretary Robert Gates for only relaxing enforcement of the policy rather than unilaterally ceasing enforcement.

On two occasions earlier this year, Choi was arrested for handcuffing himself to the White House fence in "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" protests. He was charged with two counts of failure to obey a lawful order, but last week prosecutors dropped all charges.

Earlier this week, Choi was arrested in Las Vegas during a demonstration calling on Nevada Sen. Harry Reid, the Democratic senate majority leader, to do more to pass the federal Employment Non-Discrimination Act.

Meanwhile, efforts to repeal “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” continue to move through Congress and the military. The Pentagon is currently conducting a study into a possible repeal’s effects. A report on that study is expected to be presented to President Obama and military officials by December 1.

Since 1993, when “don’t ask, don’t tell” was introduced, more than 14,000 servicemen and women have been discharged because of their sexual orientation, and tens of thousands of others have voluntarily ended their military careers.

Choi announced he is gay on The Rachel Maddow Show on March 19, 2009, prompting the U.S. Army to initiate discharge proceedings. His discharge became effective on June 29, 2010.

Lt. Dan Choi is a controversial crusader for DADT repeal

Study author Dr. Gary J. Gates (presumably no relation to Defense Secretary Robert Gates) stated that, “Despite official policy requiring that lesbians, gay men, and bisexuals remain silent about their sexual orientation, data from the US Census Bureau suggest that an estimated 66,000 gay, lesbian, and bisexual men and women are serving in the US military."

Key findings of the study include:

• An estimated 66,000 lesbians, gay men, and bisexuals are serving in the US military, accounting for approximately 2.2% of military personnel.
• Approximately 13,000 gay, lesbian, and bisexual people are serving on active duty (comprising 0.9% of all active duty personnel) while nearly 53,000 are serving in the guard and reserve forces (3.4%).
• While women comprise only about 14% of active duty personnel, they comprise more than 43% of lesbian and/or bisexual men and women serving on active duty.
• Lifting DADT restrictions could attract an estimated 36,700 men and women to active duty service and 12,000 more individuals to the guard and reserve.
• Since its inception in 1994, the “Don’t Ask/Don’t Tell” policy has cost the military between $290 million to more than a half a billion dollars.
• The military spends an estimated $22,000 to $43,000 per person to replace those discharged under DADT.

In other words, 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell" has never worked, and never will.

In the meantime, both the Senate and the Pentagon have continued to drag their feet on the issue, despite prompting from President Obama, former U.S. Generals, and Congress to repeal the archaic law.  A repeal passed the House earlier this year.

Click here for for a link to the study.

Choi and Pietrangelo

Prosecutors have dropped all charges against two openly gay service members who twice chained themselves to a White House fence to protest the military's "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy.

Lt. Dan Choi and Cpt. James Pietrangelo II had been charged with two counts of failure to obey a lawful order after they were arrested on two separate occasions back on March 18 and April 20 while protesting the military ban on openly gay service members.

Choi and Pietrangelo appeared in D.C. Superior Court on Wednesday with the intent to plead not guilty and face trial when word came that the government had decided against prosecution.

Choi had subpoenaed President Obama to appear, but an attorney for the prosecution told the Associated Press that the subpoena was never served.

Prosecutor Christine Chang wasn't able to explain the last-minute decision to drop the charges, but Choi said he believes Obama administration officials didn't want to draw attention to the policy.