WASHINGTON — The Pentagon announced Thursday that it will relax enforcement of the “don’t ask, don’t tell” rules that prevent gays and lesbians from serving openly in the military, a decision that officials described as a temporary step until Congress can take permanent action.
Defense Secretary Robert Gates said the military would restrict the kind of evidence that can be used against service members suspected of “homosexual conduct.” For example, investigators will generally ignore anonymous complaints and require accusations made by third parties to be given under oath.
Gates said the changes, which are effective immediately, would ensure “a greater measure of common sense and common decency.” He said pending investigations would be required to comply with the new policy. Pentagon officials said they did not know how many current cases might be affected but noted that 428 service members last year were kicked out of the military because of their sexual orientation.
At Colorado’s Fort Carson, five soldiers have been released since 2008 based on the “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy, said base spokesman Randy Tysor.
Gates asked Pentagon lawyers last summer to review whether the Defense Department had the legal discretion to enforce the “don’t ask, don’t tell” law more loosely. The process stalled until President Barack Obama urged Congress to repeal the law in his Jan. 27 State of the Union address.
The Pentagon is moving ahead on the assumption that Congress will overturn the ban on gays serving openly.
Tricia Heller, 44, a founder of Blue Alliance, support and education network for LGBT Air Force Academy alumni, said “everybody is moving in the right direction. The Pentagon and the Department of Defense are going through their process. Now Congress is looking at addressing it.”
Now a corporate attorney in Windsor, Heller graduated from the Air Force Academy in 1987, then piloted C-141 and C-9 military aircraft.
“We are a diverse and very professional group of doctors, lawyers and bankers,” she said. “When the services ultimately get the policy where they want it to be and need help integrating it, we will look forward to being a part of the transition.”
Some gay-rights advocacy groups welcomed the Pentagon’s announcement but said it was no substitute for congressional action.
Mindy Barton, the legal director for Denver’s GLBT Community Center, agrees. “I think this will ensure some fairness in the way the current policy is applied, but we still need to get a full repeal.”
Gay and lesbian service men and women call the center’s legal help line wondering how the “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy applies to them.
“We have situations where people ask about veterans’ benefits,” Barton said, wondering whether being openly gay after service could negatively affect military benefits.
Barton particularly supports the discontinuation of third-party reports outing gay and lesbian service members. “That’s important because we have situations where ex-partners . . . out the person because they are mad at them.”
Denver Post staff writers Heather McWilliams and Mike McPhee contributed to this report.
