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CONTACT:  Julia Adams, Servicemembers Legal Defense Network (202)
328-3244

Pentagon Fires Record Number of Gays 

Military Leaders Fail To Implement Cohen's Recommendations To Stop Pursuits

       Washington, D.C., January 22, 1999 -  The Pentagon released late
today its gay discharge figures for Fiscal Year 1998.  The figures show that the
Pentagon marked the fifth anniversary of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell, Don't
Pursue" by firing a record 1145 people for being gay in the past year under the
current policy.  The number of discharges is a 92% increase in gay
discharges since "Don't Ask, Don't Tell, Don't Pursue" was implemented in 1994.  The discharge figures also represent the largest number of gay discharges in more than a decade.

        C. Dixon Osburn, Co-Executive Director of Servicemembers Legal
Defense Network, said, "These numbers are shameful.  Military leaders have turned a blind eye to the continued asking, pursuit and harassment of gays, lesbians and bisexuals serving our country.  What will have to happen before the
Pentagon turns its ship around?"

The Pentagon implemented the current "Don't Ask, Don't Tell, Don't Pursue"
policy five years ago after a bitter and protracted debate in Congress.  The
new law forbids commanders from asking, pursuing or harassing gay
servicemembers.  The new law, however, codified the same restrictions on
service by gays, lesbians and bisexuals as had existed before 1994 under
Pentagon regulations.  Unlike their heterosexual counterparts, current
policy requires secrecy and celibacy by gays as a condition to serving our country under penalty of being fired or imprisoned.

The Pentagon released the gay discharges numbers today after a San Antonio
Express News story revealed that Air Force gay discharges had soared to 414,
their highest level in two decades.  The San Antonio Express News article
also reported that the basic training command at Lackland Air Force Base
accounted for 271 of the 414 Air Force gay discharges, an astonishing 65%.

        Michelle M. Benecke, SLDN Co-Executive Director stated, "There is
something terribly wrong at Lackland Air Force Base.  SLDN is calling for an impartial investigation into the reasons behind the disproportionate discharge figures at Lackland Air Force Base, something the Pentagon itself admitted that it has no mechanism to do. In fact, the April 1998 Pentagon report that first
mentioned the situation at Lackland Air Force Base, concedes that  '….the
reasons for this increase are not known and would be difficult to ascertain.'"

        C. Dixon Osburn added, "The Pentagon's spin that gays are
voluntarily coming out is disingenuous and tells us nothing.  The real question is why are people making statements.  The Pentagon is not telling you that so-called 'voluntary statements' include statements:
 
 

*       made to psychotherapists, as in the case former Marine Corporal
Kevin Blaesing

*       made in personal diaries, as in the case of former West  Point Cadet Nicole Galvan

*       contained in anonymous online profiles, as in the case of Master Chief Petty Officer Timothy McVeigh

*       made after being asked, as in the case of former SS3 Kelli Sprague

*       made in federal court documents as in the case of Able v. USA

*       coerced out of the service member due to fear, intimidation, assaults, death threats, threats of criminal prosecution and hostile command climates, as in the cases of former Air Force Major Bob Kittyle, former Marine Lance
Corporal Kevin Smith, four sailors aboard the USS Eisenhower and former Seaman Amy Barnes
 

 
"The Pentagon would have you believe that these are all 'voluntary'
statements," Osburn added.  "The Pentagon is simply hiding the ball."

        Michelle M. Benecke stated, "A logical response to the
disproportionate number of gay discharges would have been for military leaders to look into the command climate in military units. 
 

*       Is the command climate openly hostile to lesbian, gay and bisexual service members? 

*       Are officials herding people out who are or are perceived as gay in violation of military regulations? 

*       Are they forcing heterosexuals out that they do not like under guise of this policy? 

*       Are officials forgoing use of entry level separations and using the 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell, Don't Pursue' policy for ulterior reasons? 

*       How do gay discharges at Lackland compare to gay discharges at other training sites for the Navy and Army? 
 
 
 

"These are some of the very basic questions that we would ask that the
Pentagon and Air Force apparently have not," Benecke said.

        Osburn stated, "The Pentagon might have some credibility if it had
taken concrete steps to improve implementation of 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell, Don't
Pursue,' but they have not.  None of the recommendations made in the
Pentagon's April 1998 policy have been implemented."

        The recommendations in the Pentagon's April 1998 report included
issuing guidance to:
 
 

*       Prohibit pretrial agreements or "plea bargains" to obtain evidence of consensual homosexual conduct;

*       Protect servicemembers from investigations so that they can report anti-gay harassment or lesbian-baiting without fear of reprisal;

*       Limit the scope of investigations to prevent fishing expeditions; and

*       Require commanders to consult with higher headquarters before initiating investigations into alleged homosexuality; 

*       Provide necessary and effective training on the limits to
investigations under "Don't Ask, Don't Tell, Don't Pursue."
 
 
 

        SLDN reports that none of these recommendations have been
implemented.

        SLDN will release its annual report on "Don't Ask, Don't Tell, Don't
Pursue" on the fifth anniversary of the policy at the end of February.  The report
will provide details about the Pentagon's ongoing campaign against gays,
lesbians and bisexuals serving our country.

SLDN is an independent legal aid and watchdog group that monitors the "Don't
Ask, Don't Tell, Don't Pursue" policy.