Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: MONDAY, March 22, 1993 TAG: 9303220022
SECTION: NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL PAGE: A-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: WASHINGTON LENGTH: Medium
NAVY CALLS GAY ISSUE DISRUPTIVE
The Navy is circulating a court deposition on Capitol Hill that contends the reinstatement of a gay sailor has proven disruptive.The move dramatizes the looming struggle between the military and President Clinton over lifting the ban on homosexuals in uniform.
"His re-enlistment has struck a discordant note with the troops," Capt. Gregory Markwell said in the deposition in the case of Keith Meinhold. Meinhold, a 12-year Navy veteran, was discharged after he announced on a television program that he is gay.
Some military personnel have refused to fly with Meinhold, forcing the Navy to rework their schedules, the captain said in the court papers.
The distribution of the deposition to congressional committees comes a few weeks before Senate hearings into Clinton's proposal to end the half-century ban on homosexuals in the armed services. The policy has run into strong opposition from many military leaders, and Clinton faces a bruising battle in Congress as well.
The Associated Press obtained a copy of the eight-page deposition from congressional officials.
Sen. Sam Nunn, D-Ga., chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee and a powerful opponent of lifting the ban, said Sunday that Clinton didn't yet have a majority in support of the change.
Appearing on NBC's "Meet the Press," Nunn expressed reservations about Clinton's attempt to separate status - one's sexual orientation - from behavior in the armed services.
"When you declare your status you are describing your behavior," Nunn said, adding that the issue would "go away if everyone kept their private behavior to themselves."
A Navy spokesman, Cmdr. Steve Pietropaoli, said Friday that he knew of no official on Capitol Hill who had asked for the deposition or who had provided it. He said, however, that it could have been given out informally.
Rep. Patricia Schroeder, D-Colo., a senior member of the House Armed Services Committee and an outspoken opponent of the ban, expressed outrage over the Navy's distribution of the deposition.
"I don't know what happened to professionalism but it seems to have taken a sabbatical," she said. "I really hope this weekend they find their Constitution and reread it. This is not a banana republic and they are not above the law."
Meinhold won a temporary court order in November reinstating him. On Jan. 28, the federal judge in the case ruled that the ban on homosexuals in the military was unconstitutional.
Navy lawyers deposed Markwell on Jan. 14. Markwell is commanding officer of the patrol squadron at the Naval Air Station at Moffett Field, Calif., where Meinhold, a sonar technician, worked as an instructor under training after being reinstated.
Meinhold's attorney, John McGuire, questioned the Navy's distribution of the deposition, which was solely for the purpose of the suit between Meinhold and the Defense Department over his reinstatement.
McGuire said Meinhold's return to the squadron has been a "nonevent," but the Navy reacted as if "the Russians were coming. They were anticipating a major riot."
In his deposition, Markwell painted a troubling picture, saying that Meinhold's presence in the squadron "has reduced morale, efficiency and mission focus within the command."
"While the effect on unit morale is difficult to quantify, many hours have been spent dealing with issues created by his return," the captain said.
Navy officials have spent more than 100 man hours dealing with Meinhold's return, according to Markwell.
The deposition also called into question Meinhold's honesty.
Meinhold said he was denied Christmas leave because his presence in the squadron was needed. Markwell said he was unaware of a leave request and said if it had been submitted, it would have been approved.
Meinhold has said that his supervisor, identified only as Senior Chief Dooling, told him he was the "best instructor in the division, and that since my return he realizes how much improvement the instructors need."
Markwell described this statement as "inaccurate," saying the assessment was Dooling's alone and was not shared by the chain of command.