WASHINGTON -- The US military allowed at least 36 gay soldiers last year to stay in uniform,despite efforts by their commanders or fellow soldiers to have them discharged under the "don't ask, don't tell" policy, according to a review of hundreds of cases in which soldiers sought to remain in uniform without denying their homosexuality.
The number of soldiers allowed to stay despite being identified as gay -- 36 of 120 contested cases
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was substantially higher than in 2004, when 22 of 125 soldiers prevailed, and three times as manyas in 2003, when only 12 of 107 were able to persuade their commanders or a military review board to keep them in uniform, the data show.
The Pentagon declined to explain why more gay soldiers were being retained, but the lawyers who represent soldiers challenging cases under the policy say the Pentagon seems to have softened its stance on homosexuality.
The lawyers attributed the change both to a growing acceptance of gays within the ranks and to the military's need to keep more highly trained soldiers in the Iraq War.
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