Almy et al v. United States Department of Defense et al

Filing 43

MOTION for Partial Summary Judgment filed by Michael D. Almy, Jason D. Knight, Anthony J. Loverde. Motion Hearing set for 9/1/2011 01:30 PM in Courtroom 3, 17th Floor, San Francisco before Hon. Richard Seeborg. Responses due by 8/10/2011. Replies due by 8/17/2011. (Attachments: # 1 Declaration by Almy, # 2 Exhibit 1 to Almy Dec, # 3 Exhibit 2 to Almy Dec, # 4 Exhibit 3 to Almy Dec, # 5 Exhibit 4 to Almy Dec, # 6 Exhibit 5 to Almy Dec, # 7 Exhibit 6 to Almy Dec, # 8 Exhibit 7 to Almy Dec, # 9 Exhibit 8 to Almy Dec, # 10 Exhibit 9 to Almy Dec, # 11 Exhibit 10 to Almy Dec, # 12 Declaration by Knight, # 13 Exhibit 1 to Knight Dec, # 14 Exhibit 2 to Knight Dec, # 15 Exhibit 3 to Knight Dec, # 16 Exhibit 4 to Knight Dec, # 17 Exhibit 5 to Knight Dec, # 18 Exhibit 6 to Knight Dec, # 19 Exhibit 7 to Knight Dec, # 20 Declaration by Loverde, # 21 Exhibit 1 to Loverde Dec, # 22 Exhibit 2 to Loverde Dec, # 23 Exhibit 3 to Loverde Dec, # 24 Exhibit 4 to Loverde Dec, # 25 Exhibit 5 to Loverde Dec, # 26 Exhibit 6 to Loverde Dec, # 27 Exhibit 7 to Loverde Dec, # 28 Certificate/Proof of Service)(Woodmansee, Mark) (Filed on 7/27/2011) Modified on 8/4/2011 (gba, COURT STAFF).

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M. ANDREW WOODMANSEE (CA SBN 201780)
[e-mail]
STEPHANIE L. FONG (CA SBN 240836)
[e-mail]
KIMBERLY R. GOSLING (CA SBN 247803)
[e-mail]
JESSICA A. ROBERTS (CA SBN 265570)
[e-mail]
MORRISON & FOERSTER LLP
12531 High Bluff Drive
San Diego, California 92130-2040
Telephone: [phone]
Facsimile: 858.720.5125
JOHN M. GOODMAN (DC SBN 383147)
[e-mail]
SERVICEMEMBERS LEGAL DEFENSE NETWORK
P. O. Box 65301
Washington, D.C. 20035-5301
Telephone: [phone]
Facsimile: 202.797.1635
Attorneys for Plaintiffs
MICHAEL D. ALMY, JASON D. KNIGHT,
AND ANTHONY J. LOVERDE

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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

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NORTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

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MICHAEL D. ALMY, JASON D. KNIGHT,
and ANTHONY J. LOVERDE,
Plaintiffs,

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v.
UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF
DEFENSE; ROBERT M. GATES, Secretary
of Defense; DEPARTMENT OF THE AIR
FORCE; MICHAEL B. DONLEY, Secretary,
Department of the Air Force; DEPARTMENT
OF THE NAVY; and RAY MABUS,
Secretary, Department of the Navy,
Defendants.

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DECLARATION OF JASON D. KNIGHT
sd-544698

Case No. 10-cv-05627-RS
DECLARATION OF JASON D.
KNIGHT IN SUPPORT OF
PLAINTIFFS’ MOTION FOR
PARTIAL SUMMARY JUDGMENT
Date: September 1, 2011
Time: 1:30 p.m.
Courtroom: 3, 17th Floor
Judge: Hon. Richard Seeborg

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I, Jason D. Knight, hereby declare as follows:

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1.

I joined the military both to serve this country and to be able to afford college

under the G.I. Bill. I enlisted in the Navy on or about April 4, 2001. I served from 2001 to 2003
in the Navy Ceremonial Guard in Washington, D.C. During my service in the Ceremonial Guard,
I represented the United States at official White House ceremonies and during state and military
funerals at Arlington National Cemetery and the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. I was present at
more than 1,500 military funerals as part of the firing party rendering the 21-gun salute.
2.

In July 2003, following my service in the Ceremonial Guard, I began training as a

Hebrew Linguist—formally, a Cryptological Technician Interpretive (CTI) Linguist—at the
Defense Language Institute in Monterey, California. After my graduation in December 2004, I
reported for duty at Fort Gordon, Georgia, where I attained the rank of Petty Officer Third Class.
3.

In 2004, I filed paperwork annulling my marriage because I realized that I am gay.

In keeping with the Navy’s core values of honesty and integrity, I provided the Navy with copies
of my marriage annulment. I also provided my commander with a written statement, in which I
revealed my sexual orientation. The Navy then began administrative discharge proceedings under
DADT.
4.

At the conclusion of Navy administrative proceedings, I was discharged under

DADT for making a statement that I am gay. I received an Honorable Discharge on or about
April 3, 2005. Although discharge under DADT is ordinarily accompanied by a lifetime ban on
future military service, indicated by an “RE-4” negative reentry code, my discharge papers made
me eligible for active duty recall due to a bureaucratic error. A true and correct copy of my
April 3, 2005 discharge order is attached hereto as Exhibit 1.
5.

On or about June 12, 2006, I received a letter from the Navy recalling me to active

duty service. A true and correct copy of those orders is attached hereto as Exhibit 2.
6.

On or about September 11, 2006, I was deployed to Kuwait in support of

Operation Iraqi Freedom for a year-long tour of duty with the Navy Customs Battalion Romeo.

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DECLARATION OF JASON D. KNIGHT
sd-544698

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During this entire tour of duty, I served as an openly gay man, out to my immediate chain of

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command and to most of the rest of my command.

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I attained the rank of Petty Officer Second Class during this tour of duty. A true

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and correct copy of the order entitling me to wear the uniform of Petty Officer Second Class is

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attached hereto as Exhibit 3.

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8.

During my service in the Navy, I received numerous military awards and

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decorations. These accolades include the Navy and Marine Corps Achievement Medal, the Navy

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Good Conduct Medal, the National Defense Service Medal, the Global War on Terrorism Service

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Medal, and the Navy Pistol Marksmanship Medal. My accolades also include the following

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awards and decorations that I received during my service as an openly gay man: a second Navy

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and Marine Corps Achievement Medal, the Army Achievement Medal, the Global War on

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Terrorism Expeditionary Medal, the Sea Service Deployment Ribbon, the Navy and Marine Corp

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Overseas Service Ribbon, and the Armed Forces Reserve Medal.

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9.
recognition:

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CTI2 Knight consistently performed his duties in an exemplary and
professional manner. He excelled in the coordination, logistics and
transportation requirements for over 100 personnel for Customs
Romeo and FWD Echo [Morale, Welfare and Recreation] trips to
Kuwait City. His attention to detail directly contributed to the
extraordinary success of the mission. CTI2 Knight’s exceptional
professionalism, unrelenting perseverance, and loyal devotion to
duty reflected credit upon him and were in keeping with the highest
traditions of the United States Naval Service.

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My second Navy and Marine Corps Achievement Medal contained the following

It is attached hereto as Exhibit 4.
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Also during my service in the Navy, my military superiors and evaluators provided

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consistently positive assessments of me in my annual performance evaluations and promotion

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recommendations, including those performance evaluations and promotion recommendations

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issued during the time when I was serving openly.

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In March 2007, after General Peter Pace, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff,

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publicly expressed his personal views of homosexuality as “immoral,” I wrote a letter to the

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editor of the Stars & Stripes, a military newspaper, responding to General Pace’s comments.
DECLARATION OF JASON D. KNIGHT
sd-544698

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In May 2007, I was the subject of an article in the Stars & Stripes regarding my

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service in Kuwait while openly gay. The Stars & Stripes article, “Discharged Gay Sailor is

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Called Back to Active Duty” printed on May 6, 2007—the same day I boarded a plane with my

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unit heading back to the United States after a year-long deployment. Members of my command

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are quoted in the article attesting to my character and saying “He’s better than the average sailor

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at his job.” I arrived in San Diego the next day, where I was to serve out two weeks of terminal

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leave. Shortly thereafter, however, the Navy began administrative discharge proceedings under

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DADT against me for the second time. A true and correct copy of that article is attached here to

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as Exhibit 5.

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On or about May 11, 2007, I was called to report to the Naval Station in San

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Diego, where I was to complete my discharge paperwork despite the fact that this was not my

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parent command. The Personnel Specialist that I was placed with to complete my DD214

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paperwork was aware of the reason for my discharge. He was empathetic; he informed me that

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he was reluctantly carrying out orders from his commander to process me out under DADT

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because I made a public statement that I am gay.

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I was not given the choice to appear before an Admin Board, to dispute the claim,

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or to seek outside guidance. The discharge proceedings were not administered through my parent

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command, nor were they initiated by my parent command.

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At the end of this process, I received a DD214 dated 18 May 2007 that stated I was

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discharged for a “Homosexual Statement” and an RE-4 code barring me from future service

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signed by direction of the OIC C. A. Michael, GS-7. The next day I received a second DD214

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dated 19 May 2007 with an RE-1 reenlistment code allowing for future service signed by

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direction of the OIC C. A. Michael, GS-7. True and correct copies of my May 2007 discharge

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orders are attached hereto as Exhibit 6 and Exhibit 7, respectively.

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I was discharged from the Navy twice against my will. Had I not been discharged

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either time under DADT, I would have remained on active duty in the Navy to this day. I simply

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wish to be reinstated into active duty in the Navy so I can once again serve my country and fulfill

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the commitment I made to the Navy.
DECLARATION OF JASON D. KNIGHT
sd-544698

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