Three military veterans who were discharged under the "don’t ask, don’t tell" law, filed a lawsuit against the government Monday in the U.S. District Court in San Francisco asking to be reinstated in the military and for the court to declare that the ban on gays in the military is unconstitutional.
The lawsuit was filed by former Air Force Staff Sgt. Anthony Loverde, 31, who was profiled in the fall print edition of the SF Public Press, former Air Force Maj. Michael Almy, 40, and former Navy Petty Officer Second Class Jason Knight, 28, according to the Associated Press.
The lawsuit was filed just days after the U.S. Senate blocked a military spending bill that included the repeal of openly gay troops serving in the military.
“I don’t feel like I’m going up against the military, I really don’t. I just feel like this is a necessary step for doing away with this policy,” Loverde told the Associated Press.
Sens. Susan Collins, R-Maine, and Joe Lieberman, I-Conn., have introduced a standalone bill to end the ban, but it is not certain if the Senate or House will take a vote before the holiday break.
