Gay Headlines
Anti-Gay Pa. Amendment Dropped Posted: May 7, 2008 - 10:30 am ET (Harrisburg, Pennsylvania) In a surprise move just hours before the Pennsylvania Senate was expected to approve a proposed constitutional amendment that would bar same-sex marriage and civil unions in the state the measure's backer pulled the bill. Sen. Michael Brubaker (R) in asking to have the bill indefinitely tabled said that even though there was broad support in the Senate it would likely fail in the House. "It has become apparent that, as the issue stands today, Senate Bill 1250 will not move in the House," said Brubaker. The proposed amendment easily passed a key Senate committee on Monday (story) and was headed for a vote on the full Senate floor when Brubaker made his announcement. Tabling the bill will not kill it, but Brubaker said he needs time to muster House support. It is unlikely it will resurface again this year. The Pennsylvania Senate is controlled by Republicans, the House by Democrats. Rep. Babette Josephs (D) the powerful chair of the House State Government Committee vowed she would not allow the bill to come to a committee vote, ensuring it would not make to a full vote of that chamber. To put a proposed amendment on the ballot it would need to be approved by both houses in two consecutive sessions of the legislature. Pennsylvania already limits marriage to opposite-sex couples but supporters of the amendment say a clear definition of marriage is needed in the constitution to prevent judges from striking down the law. A recent poll found that although most Pennsylvanians oppose same-sex marriage there was widespread support civil unions. The poll, conducted by Susquehanna Polling and Research, found 65 percent of those questioned support civil unions while only 27 percent were opposed. (story) Sen. Vincent J. Fumo (D) who opposes the amendment told a news conference at the Capitol that Brubaker was only making excuses by saying he was pulling the bill because of opposition in the House. Fumo said there was support in the Senate for stripping out the civil union prohibition, something that Brubaker opposes. Pressure Mounts On Clinton To Quit Posted: May 7, 2008 - 8:00 am ET (Washington) Hillary Rodham Clinton needed a game changer. Instead, it's almost game over. Barack Obama won a resounding victory in North Carolina after the worst two-week stretch in his campaign. And Clinton, fueled by a burst of energy from her convincing win in Pennsylvania last month, barely eked out a win in Indiana despite her full-throated populist appeal in that largely blue-collar state. There are six primaries left in the Democrats' epic battle for the nomination, but Tuesday's results were decisive on their own: They offered Clinton her last, best chance to turn the tables on her rival, and she didn't even come close. "It's bad news for Hillary Clinton, but frankly I think the game changed a long time ago," said unaligned Democratic strategist Garry South. "Barack Obama has outraised her substantially, he's won more states, more pledged delegates, and is ahead in the popular vote. It's obvious he's outperformed her." Indeed, Obama managed to outpace Clinton through a period that tested his mettle and political skills more than any other in the 15-month campaign. In a stretch that pitted Clinton's gritty determination against Obama's calm fortitude, the Illinois senator prevailed. To be sure, Obama is still struggling to win some demographic groups, notably blue-collar white voters, who are a key component of the Democratic base. Among whites without college degrees, Clinton outdid Obama by 64 percent to 35 percent in Indiana, and 71 percent to 26 percent in North Carolina. The New York senator and her surrogates have trumpeted that advantage, hoping to persuade the so-called superdelegates likely to decide the race will that she would be the stronger Democratic candidate in the general election. Seeking to broaden her advantage with that group, Clinton fashioned herself as the champion of the working class, railing against Wall Street "money grubbers" and promoting a summer federal gas tax holiday widely panned by economists and many Democrats. Obama denounced Clinton's gas tax proposal as an unabashed pander. Clinton aides were giddy, feeling that they had drawn Obama into an argument over the economy, which has long been viewed as her strong suit. Obama was also forced to contend with the re-emergence of his controversial former pastor, Jeremiah Wright, who made incendiary statements at a Washington press conference last week. Among other things, he suggested the U.S. government may have developed the AIDS virus to infect the black community and had invited the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. Exit polls showed the Wright imbroglio did influence about half the voters in both states as they weighed which candidate to choose. Yet none of that shook the fundamentals of the race, as the results Tuesday demonstrated. Obama remains ahead of Clinton in every measure, and the final jury - superdelegates - have been trending his way, even as he charted rough seas. His strong showing in North Carolina and Indiana will undoubtedly speed up that pace. Clinton, meanwhile, is low on cash and her anemic performance Tuesday means she may not be able to rely on a surge in Internet fundraising that she saw after winning primaries in Pennsylvania, Ohio and Texas. She will meet with superdelegates Wednesday and attend an evening fundraiser in Washington - both key tests of her chances going forward. She also continues to be dogged by an "honest gap" - hardly a strong suit in making the case to superdelegates that she is the more electable candidate. Exit polls in North Carolina found just 49 percent of voters believe Clinton is honest and trustworthy, compared to 71 percent for Obama. In Indiana, 54 percent said Clinton is honest, while 66 percent said Obama is. Her aides insist she will press anew for a resolution to the disputed contests in Michigan and Florida, both of which she won, but whose results were voided because the primaries were moved in violation of Democratic Party rules. Anticipating those efforts, Obama campaign manager David Plouffe sent a memo to superdelegates reminding them of the math. He said Clinton would need to win 68 percent of the remaining delegates to win the nomination - an extremely unlikely scenario, made harder by her poor performance Tuesday. "With the Clinton path to the nomination getting even narrower, we expect new and wildly creative scenarios to emerge in the coming days. While those scenarios may be entertaining, the are not legitimate and will not be considered legitimate by this campaign or millions of supporters, volunteers and donors." At least one undecided superdelegate saw Clinton nearing the end of her game as well. "Senator Clinton did not get out of the night what she needed," said North Carolina Rep. Brad Miller. "To use a basketball analogy, she traded baskets. And she needed to do much better than that this late in the contest with her down 150 or 160 pledged delegates." NY High Court Refuses Gay Marriage Case Posted: May 6, 2008 - 5:00 pm ET (New York City) The Court of Appeals, the highest court in New York State, Tuesday declined to hear a case challenging an appeals court ruling that found the marriages of same-sex couples married in jurisdictions where they are legal must be recognized in New York. The decision not to accept the case means the lower court ruling will stand. On February 1 the Appellate Division of state Supreme Court reversed a judge's ruling in 2006 that Monroe Community College did not have to extend health benefits to an employee's lesbian partner. (story) Patricia Martinez, a word processing supervisor, sued the school in 2005, arguing that it granted benefits to heterosexual married couples but denied them to Martinez and her partner, Lisa Ann Golden. The couple formalized their relationship in a civil union ceremony in Vermont in 2001 and were married in Canada in 2004. The college refused to add Golden to the health care benefits because its contract with the Civil Service Employees Association did not address benefits for same-sex partners. Since then, the contract has been enhanced to extend benefits to an employee's domestic partner. State Supreme Court Justice Harold Galloway dismissed Martinez's lawsuit in August 2006, saying that the state does not recognize same-sex marriages. The state legislature ``currently defines marriage as limited to the union of one man and one woman,'' he wrote. The appellate judges disagreed, determining that there is no legal impediment in New York to the recognition of a same-sex marriage. The state legislature ``may decide to prohibit the recognition of same-sex marriages solemnized abroad,'' the ruling said. ``Until it does so, however, such marriages are entitled to recognition in New York.'' Monroe County asked the high court to overturn the appellate court ruling. Empire State Pride Agenda, the largest LGBT rights group in New York State welcomed the decision not to reopen the case, and prodded the legislature to pass marriage equality legislation for all New Yorkers. "Despite today's good news, the state of marriage for same-sex couples in New York is still unsettled," said Empire State Pride Agenda Executive Director Alan Van Capelle. "Until a law is passed by the New York State Legislature, there will always be the possibility that another court decision could undo Martinez v. County of Monroe and strip away from otherwise legally married same-sex couples all of the 1324 state-based rights and responsibilities that come with a marriage license in New York." In 2006 the New York Court of Appeals, the state's highest court, ruled that same-sex couples do not have an automatic constitutional right to marry in the state. (story) It said that the issue, however, could be taken up by the Legislature. Last June the Democratically-controlled New York State Assembly passed same-sex marriage legislation (story) but the GOP-controlled Senate has refused to take up the bill. ©365Gay.com 2008 Top Vet In Congress Calls For Repeal Of Ban On Gays In Military Posted: May 6, 2008 - 5:00 pm ET (Washington) Rep. Sestak (D-PA) is the latest in a growing number of former military brass calling for the repeal of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" law banning lesbian, gay and bisexual personnel from serving openly in the military. Sestak (pictured), who had served as a three-star Admiral and who spent thirty-one years in the Navy, is the highest ranking military veteran in Congress. "It is easy for me to see why 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell' should be repealed," Sestak told the Equality Forum. "Once you have served in war and faced danger with a gay service member, how can you come home and say gay people should not enjoy equal rights? It is simple. 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell' must be repealed." Sestak joins 16 other veterans in Congress who are co-sponsors of legislation to lift the ban on openly gay service. "Veterans like Admiral Sestak, who have dedicated their lives to serving this country, are leading the movement in Congress to repeal 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell," said Aubrey Sarvis, executive director for Servicemembers Legal Defense Network. "These lawmakers agree with senior military officers, including former chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff John Shalishkashvili and retired Army Major General Vance Coleman, that when it comes to defusing IEDs, tending to injured troops, deciphering enemy codes and flying reconnaissance missions -- sexual orientation is irrelevant. Seventy-nine percent of the American people agree with them and it is time that Congress finally repeal this law." Last month, Lawrence J. Korb,former Assistant Secretary of Defense under President Ronald Reagan, told a joint hearing of the House Armed Services Air and Land Forces Subcommittee and the House Armed Services Readiness Subcommittee to "get rid of outmoded social restrictions," such as DADT. The Military Readiness Enhancement Act which would repeal the decade old DADT has bipartisan support and hearings are expected to be held this year. Conservative groups are urging retention of the ban. Last week, Americans For The Military, part of the conservative Center for Military Readiness, began circulating a petition online to pressure members of Congress to keep DADT. "Our nation's military should not be used as a tool to advance the goals of gay activist groups," the petition to members of Congress says. "Forcing a sexual agenda on the armed forces would hurt discipline and moral ... As an American I ask that you uphold this law to help to protect and preserve our military." Under DADT two people every day are dropped from the military for being gay. In the 10 years that DADT has been in force more than 10,000 personnel have been discharged as a result of thed policy, including 800 with skills deemed 'mission critical,' such as pilots, combat engineers, and linguists. The number of gay men and lesbians turned way by military recruiters is unknown. A study conducted last year for SLDN concluded that the U.S. military could attract as many as 41,000 new recruits if gays and lesbians in the military were able to be open about their sexual orientation. Data released in April by the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee show that the Army and the Marine Corp, under pressure to increase their numbers, have sharply raised the number of recruits who have felony convictions. The bulk of the crimes involved were burglaries, other thefts, and drug offenses, but nine involved sex crimes and six involved manslaughter or vehicular homicide convictions. Several dozen Army and Marine recruits had aggravated assault or robbery convictions, including incidents involving weapons
by 365Gay.com Newscenter Staff
by The Associated Press
by 365Gay.com Newscenter Staff
by 365Gay.com Newscenter Staff
by 365Gay.com Newscenter Staff
Posted: April 29, 2008 - 5:00 pm ET
(Indianapolis, Indiana) Cold case detective have re-opened a 13 year old murder case of an unidentified man to see if he was a victim of a serial killer who preyed on gay men in the 1990s.
The man's body was found in a wooded area in Floyds Knobs. Indiana in in 1995. Never identified, he was buried as a "John Doe".
On Monday the remains were being exhumed from a cemetery in New Albany and police say new information and modern investigation methods may help in identifying him.
Officers said they believe the man may be Jerry Williams-Comer, 34, who disappeared from Indianapolis in August 1995.
The case was re-opened after a woman who works for the Doe Network - a Web site run by amateur sleuths who try to solve cold cases.
The women contacted police saying that Williams-Comer had disappeared shortly before the body was found. She also said that both Williams-Comer and the unidentified body where those of white males around the same age.
In addition, Williams-Comer was known to have had bad knees and that surgery had been performed on one knee of the body that was discovered in 1995.
The date also coincides with the mysterious disappearances of nearly 20 gay men from the greater Indianapolis area.
The men began to go missing in the early 1990. At first no one made the connection that all were gay, or that they may have been victims of foul play until a private investigator hired by the family of one of the men began putting the pieces together.
When police became involved in the disappearances the investigation led them to an 18-acre suburban estate known as Fox Hollow Farm owned by local businessman Herb Baumeister.
Baumeister had fled, but his wife allowed police to search the grounds where the remains of 17 men were discovered.
Before police could question Baumeister he had crossed the border into Canada and committed suicide.
Only four of the bodies have been identified.
by The Associated Press
Posted: April 30, 2008 - 8:00 am ET
(Trenton, New Jersey) The wife of former Gov. Jim McGreevey wants to bar testimony in their divorce trial from a former aide who claims he had sexual trysts with the couple.
Dina Matos McGreevey's lawyer argues in court papers that the testimony of former campaign aide Teddy Pedersen is "irrelevant," "inflammatory," "far-fetched" and should not be allowed.
"The only reason for calling him is to elicit salacious sexual testimony," her lawyer John Post wrote.
McGreevey lawyer Stephen Haller contends that Pedersen's testimony is relevant to disproving Matos McGreevey's claim that she was duped into marrying a gay man with political ambitions.
Judge Karen Cassidy will rule on the testimony and other issues when the couple's divorce trial starts May 6.
Matos McGreevey argues that McGreevey concealed his sexual identity, which amounts to fraud and entitles her to more money in the divorce. She is seeking $600,000 for time she would have spent at the governor's mansion as first lady had he not resigned in disgrace in 2004.
Pedersen said in sworn testimony that he participated in regular threesomes with the couple beginning in 1999 while they were dating and continuing until McGreevey became governor in 2001. The couple was married in 2000.
McGreevey has said the encounters happened, but his wife denies it.
Pedersen, 29, said he came forward to buttress McGreevey's contention that his wife had to have known he was gay when they married. She says she had no clue, although in a book about her marriage, she acknowledged missing several signs.
McGreevey, Matos McGreevey and Post did not return messages for comment.
Haller said McGreevey would like the case settled. But if there is a trial, he wants the facts heard since they will "forefully contradict" Matos McGreevey's account.
Gay Bar Settles With Woman Who Was Ejected
by 365Gay.com Newscenter Staff
Posted: April 29, 2008 - 5:00 pm ET
(Montreal, Quebec) A Montreal gay bar that caters to male clients has settled a discrimination complaint with a woman who was thrown out of the premises.
Bar Le Stud and Audrey Vachon, the 21-year-old woman who launched the complaint, agreed to keep the terms of the settlement confidential.
Quebec's human rights commission says businesses have the right to attract a particular clientele but not to discriminate by excluding other customers.
Vachon sat down at the bar with her father for an afternoon beer a year ago when staff told them women were not allowed.
Le Stud owner Michel Gadoury said at the time women had been banned most nights since the bar opened 11 years ago.
Principal Outs Gay Student Couple
by 365Gay.com Newscenter Staff
Posted: April 29, 2008 - 1:00 pm ET
(Memphis, Tennessee) A public high school principal who posted the names of two boys on a list of students believed to be couples, revealing their relationship to their parents as well as other students and teachers, violated the students’ constitutional right to freedom of association, the American Civil Liberties Union charged Tuesday.
In a letter to school board officials in Memphis, the ACLU demanded that the school reprimand the principal and take steps to ensure such actions never happen again.
In September of 2007, the principal at Hollis F. Price Middle College High told teachers she wanted the names of all student couples, “hetero and homo,” because she wanted to monitor them personally to prevent students from engaging in public displays of affection.
The two students now represented by the ACLU, Andrew and Nicholas (who have asked that their last names not be revealed), were two A students who had been seeing each other for a short time and were attempting to keep their relationship quiet and private.
The principal heard about them through another student, then wrote their names on a list she posted next to her desk, in full view of anyone who entered her office.
One of the boys’ mothers personally witnessed the list when she met with the principal a few days later.
“I couldn’t believe it when I went to meet with the principal and that list was right there by her desk where anyone could see it,” said Andrea, Andrew’s mother.
“African American people face enough obstacles to succeeding in this world and I want my son to have every opportunity he’s worked so hard for. Our schools should be helping our children do well, not tearing them down for something like this.”
Although the boys had never been observed by any school staff engaging in any sort of display of affection, the principal called Nicholas’s mother Nichole.
According to Nichole, the principal said things like “Did you know your son is gay?” repeatedly and went on to say that she didn’t like gay people and wouldn’t tolerate homosexuality at her school.
Both students say they’ve had to deal with verbal harassment from both teachers and students since word got out around the school about their principal’s actions.
According to Nicholas, he also suffered another consequence of the principal’s discrimination. He had submitted extensive paperwork and several recommendations from teachers for a school trip to New Orleans to assist in rebuilding efforts.
Having a long history of community service, he was considered a shoo-in to be selected to go before the incident, but then a teacher told Nicholas some faculty were afraid he might “embarrass the school” or engage in “inappropriate behavior.”
A few days later, another student who hadn’t even applied to go on the trip was selected in his place.
“We never bothered anyone or did a single thing at school that broke any of the rules,” said Nicholas, a junior and honor student. “Every day I feel like they’re still punishing me, and I’m worried that this is going to hurt my chances to get into a good college.”
“The principal’s outing of these two students to their families, classmates, and teachers is unacceptable. Its only purpose was to intimidate not only these students but all gay students at Hollis Price,” said Hedy Weinberg, Executive Director at the ACLU of Tennessee.
“Educators should be focused on educating their students and not on harassing them because of their sexual orientation or the people with whom they associate.”
School officials have already confirmed the existence of the list to the ACLU in prior meetings held in an attempt to resolve the matter privately the union said.
In Tuesday’s letter to the Memphis City Schools Board of Commissioners, the ACLU points out that the principal ordered the boys not to even walk or study together at school.
“This is a public high school that runs on taxpayer dollars. As such, it is part of the government and must obey the Constitution in dealing with the students entrusted to its care each day,” said Bruce Kramer, a partner at Borod and Kramer in Memphis who also is working on the case.
“This school has no business singling these boys out and taking away educational opportunities against them simply because they were dating.”
Long Island Gay Couple Charged With Trespassing In Marriage License Protest
by 365Gay.com Newscenter Staff
Posted: April 29, 2008 - 11:00 am ET
(Oyster Bay, New York) A middle-aged gay couple was charged with trespassing when they refused to leave the town clerk's office after being refused a marriage license.
Dan Pinello, 58, and Lee Nissensohn, 50, entered the building about 3:30 Monday afternoon.
Town Clerk Steven L. Labriola told the couple he was "precluded by law" from issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples.
"We're not trying to make statements here, we're trying to do our jobs," he later told Newsday.
Pinello and Nissensohn have been together for 15 years but say New York's ban on same-sex marriage treats them like strangers.
When they refused to budge police were called.
Outside the building a small group of supporters held signs supporting gay marriage. The demonstrators chanted, "Let Dan and Lee Marry."
Two hours later Pinello and Nissensohn emerged without their marriage license but with tickets for trespassing.
"We are law-abiding citizens," Pinello, a government professor at John Jay College of Criminal Justice, told Newsday. "We pay our taxes. We have no other choice left."
In 2006 the New York Court of Appeals, the state's highest court, ruled that same-sex couples do not have a constitutional right to marry. (story) It said that the issue, however, could be taken up by the Legislature.
Last year, then-Gov. Eliot Spitzer became the first governor in the country to introduce same-sex marriage legislation. (story)
The bill passed the Democrat-controlled Assembly in June (story) but Republicans who control the Senate have refused to consider the legislation.
Pinello and Nissensohn said they hoped their protest would pressure Senate Majority Leader Joseph Bruno (R) to bring the marriage bill to a vote on the Senate floor.
A spokesperson for Bruno said Tuesday that the Majority Leader has not changed his mind on opposing same-sex marriage.
UK Cops Arrest Gay Cannibal
by 365Gay.com Newscenter Staff
Posted: April 28, 2008 - 5:00 pm ET
(London) A gay Yorkshire man has been charged with murder in the death of a man he picked up.
The naked body of Damian Oldfield, 33, was found in a house in Harehills following remarks the suspect made at a local takeout restaurant.
Police said that part of Oldfield's right leg had been cut out and pieces of diced meat were discovered in pot on a kitchen stove.
Forensic tests on the meat showed it to be human.
Investigators say they do not know how much of the leg had been eaten.
Anthony Francis Morley, 35, is in jail awaiting trial.
Police say they do not know how Oldfield and Morley met and have appealed to the gay community for help.
Oldfield worked as an advertising salesman on a Leeds-based magazine.
Colleagues say they are shocked at the killing.
It is not the first time a gay man has been arrested for murder and cannibalizing his victims.
Two separate cases occurred in Germany.
The most famous involved Armin Meiwes, 44, who is serving time for murdering and devouring Bernd Juergen Brandes, 43, in 2001.
Meiwes and Brandes met through an internet bulletin board or BBS for gay men interested in a cannibalism fetish.
"If you are between 18 and 25 years old you are my boy. Come to me and I eat your horny flesh" his ad said.
The case came to light when Meiwes posted more ads after Meiwes death for additional victims, and readers of the postings contacted police.
When police searched Meiwes' home they discovered neatly wrapped body parts in plastic bags which were labeled "according to cuts". Bones and other "non edibles" were found buried in the garden. Meiwes told police he already had consumed about 40 pounds of Brandes's body.
He told police that the two men had enjoyed a final meal together. Brandes had agreed to be castrated and the two sautéed his penis and testicles. They washed down the meal with a German white wine.
The other German case of gay man who killed his partner in 2005, dismembered him, and then froze the body parts to eat later.
Last year in Mexico City a bisexual man and his gay lover were arrested for the murder and cannibalization of his some-time girlfriend.