Path: bloom-picayune.mit.edu!snorkelwacker.mit.edu!americast.com!americast.com!americast-post Newsgroups: americast.twt.news From: americast-post@AmeriCast.Com Organization: American Cybercasting Approved: americast-post@AmeriCast.com Subject: Ordered to accept gay, Navy says no Date: Tue, 10 Nov 92 15:13:22 EST Message-ID: \SE A;NATION \SS (WS) \HD Ordered to accept gay, Navy says no \BY REUTERS \DT MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif. MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif. (Reuters) - A sailor who was discharged after publicly declaring he was homosexual said the Navy refused to give him back his job yesterday despite a federal court ruling that he should be reinstated. "The day I'd hoped for has apparently not yet arrived," Keith Meinhold said after reporting for duty at the Moffett Field Naval Air Station near Mountain View, Calif., where he worked as an aviation anti-submarine-warfare operator. He said Navy officials gave him a letter announcing they would not reinstate him. "I will never back down until the policy is changed," Mr. Meinhold said. "I will fight this to the end, whatever that is. It's unfortunate Washington still thinks it can flagrantly disregard the orders of a federal court judge." U.S. District Judge Terry Hatter, ruling in Los Angeles on Friday, ordered the Navy to reinstate Mr. Meinhold temporarily until his unfair-discharge lawsuit against the Defense Department is resolved. It was the first time a court ordered the reinstatement of a member of the armed forces discharged under the Pentagon's ban on homosexual service members. President-elect Bill Clinton has said he opposes the military's ban on homosexuals, in force since 1983, and has said he will issue an executive order lifting the ban. Mr. Meinhold entered the naval air station shortly after 1 p.m. yesterday and walked out 15 minutes later after an interview with the station's legal adviser, Lt. Janice Monk. Mr. Meinhold read out passages of a letter given to him by Lt. Monk, which she said she drew up at the direction of the base commander, Capt. Kelly Gray. "I must advise you that local Navy authorities at Naval Air Station Moffett Field are not authorized to reinstate you in the U.S. Navy," the letter said. A Navy spokesman at Moffett Field, John Shackleton, also told reporters that "local Navy authorities are not authorized to reinstate Mr. Meinhold in the Navy." He declined to answer any questions, saying that the Department of Justice in Washington should make any further comment. Mr. Meinhold, 30, received an honorable discharge from the Navy last August, three months after he announced on an ABC-TV news program that he is homosexual. He left the Navy base yesterday saying he was very disappointed by the decision, "not only for myself, but for the other 200,000 gays and lesbians in the services. "I'm sorry the bigots and the prejudiced people have won this round or at least they think they have," he said. He added that he hoped his actions would make it easier for Mr. Clinton to lift the ban on homosexuals in the military. Christopher Rudd, one of the Los Angeles lawyers representing Mr. Meinhold, said they believed the Navy was in contempt of court by refusing to comply with the order. He said the lawyers would go back to federal court today to seek enforcement of the order. This article is copyright 1992 The Washington Times. Redistribution to other sites is not permitted except by arrangement with American Cybercasting Corporation. For more information, send-email to usa@AmeriCast.COM