Thursday October 21, 2010
DADT Legal Seesaw: Now Judge Reinstates Ban on Open Homosexuals in Military
By Peter J. Smith
SAN FRANCISCO, California, October 20, 2010 (LifeSiteNews.com) – The legal seesaw over the “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” continues, now that a federal appeals has stayed a judge’s order and reinstated the congressional ban on homosexual service in the military.
A three-judge panel of the 9th US Circuit Court of Appeals Wednesday night granted the request of Justice Department attorneys to suspend the worldwide order of U.S. District Judge Virginia Phillips, which made illegal for the U.S. to enforce the “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” policy and 10 U.S.C. § 654, the 1993 law banning homosexuals from military service.
“The order is stayed temporarily in order to provide this court with an opportunity to consider fully the issues presented,” states the one page order.
Phillips repeatedly denied the government’s request to stay enforcement of her ruling against DADT until the appeals process was finished. For a whole week until the appeals court intervention, the Pentagon had instructed recruiters to allow open homosexuals to sign up, while informing them that the legal situation with DADT could change at any moment
The 9th Circuit Court intervention means the Defense Department is now free again to investigate and carry out discharge proceedings under DADT.
Justice Department attorneys explained to the appeals court in a 25-page brief that President Barack Obama opposes the law, but believes that Congress should overturn its own statute. They added that numerous court precedents have found no constitutional difficulty with DADT and the 1993 law.
That process, they explained, demands that the Defense Department committee in charge of researching the effects on military readiness by abolishing DADT be allowed to complete its report, due December 1.
The government’s attorneys also argued that Phillips’ decision should be reversed, because her worldwide injunction violates the principle of comity, as other district judges have ruled in favor of 10 U.S.C. § 654 and DADT. They said her ruling presumes to overrule those judges and U.S. law as it has developed in other U.S. circuit courts.
See previous coverage by LifeSiteNews.com:
Judge Denies Request for Stay on Ruling against Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell
https://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2010/oct/10102004.html
Judge Orders Military to Stop Enforcement of ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell’
https://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2010/oct/10101213.html
Federal Judge Deems Military ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell’ Rule ‘Unconstitutional’
https://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2010/sep/10091002.html