Sep 19, 2008  | COMMENTS     

NEW YORK — In her first major interview since becoming the Republican vice presidential candidate, Sarah Palin refused to say whether she believed homosexuality was an orientation or a choice. “Oh, I don’t — I don’t know, but I’m not one to judge and, you know, I’m from a family and from a community with many, many members of many diverse backgrounds and I’m not going to judge someone on whether they believe that homosexuality is a choice or genetic,” she said. “I’m not going to judge them.” Two years ago, Palin similarly told the Anchorage Daily News that she didn’t know if people choose to be gay. She also noted in the Anchorage Daily News interview that she has good friends who are gay.

Conductor in train crash once in same-sex relationship

CHATSWORTH, Calif. — The man who died at the helm of a California commuter train that collided with an oncoming train was once in a same-sex relationship. The Los Angeles Times reported this week that Robert Sanchez was conducting the train when it crashed, killing 24 others and injuring 135. According to the Times, Sanchez and Daniel Burton, a waiter, bought a home together in 2000 in Crestline, Calif. Burton hanged himself on Feb. 14, 2003, in the home’s garage. The Times reported that a note Burton left behind says, “I love you. Please take care of yourself and Ignatia. I love you both very much.” According to the Times, Ignatia was the greyhound dog the men owned. A coroner’s report the Times cited noted that Burton tested positive for HIV, that Sanchez told investigators he and Burton were arguing before the suicide, and that Sanchez told Burton that they should break up.

Obama supporters denounce ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell’ policy

WASHINGTON — Supporters of presidential hopeful Barack Obama called “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” a failed practice Wednesday in a conference call with reporters. The law, which precludes gays from serving openly in the armed forces, drew ire from U.S. Rep. Patrick Murphy (D-Penn.), who is cosponsoring legislation to overturn it, and others. Murphy, a former West Point professor, said it “morally is wrong” to discriminate. Retired Lt. Gen. Claudia Kennedy, the first female to reach the rank of three-star general in the U.S. Army, agreed. “I think it’s just not productive to turn away Americans who can serve, just because of their orientation,” she said. “I think it’s very important for us to change this law.” Kennedy noted that Obama, if elected, would work respectfully with the Joint Chiefs of Staff to allow gays to serve openly in the armed forces. Republican nominee Sen. John McCain has said the policy is working.

Trial ‘imminent’ in DNC gay bias case

WASHINGTON — It now appears inevitable that Democratic National Committee Chair Howard Dean will face off in court against his former gay outreach director, Donald Hitchcock. Hitchcock was fired from his DNC post in 2006, shortly after his domestic partner, Paul Yandura, wrote an open letter to gay Democrats urging them to withhold donations to the party because he felt Dean wasn’t doing enough to combat anti-gay state ballot initiatives. Hitchcock later filed a wrongful termination lawsuit against Dean and the DNC alleging, among other things, anti-gay discrimination. The DNC denies the claims. Hitchcock announced last week that final efforts at mediation had failed, all but ensuring that the case will go to trial, perhaps as early as this fall. “I am profoundly disappointed that our final mediation attempts has failed,” Hitchcock said in a statement. He said a trial is now “imminent.” Hitchcock also noted that he is “a loyal and committed Democrat and this election cycle is not only important to me but is of paramount importance to this country and my LGBT brothers and sisters. After this important election, I look forward to having my day in court and having justice served.”

Florida judge rules against state’s gay adoption ban

KEY WEST, Fla. (AP) — A circuit court judge has ruled unconstitutional Florida’s 31-year-old gay adoption ban, one of only two such statewide bans in the country. The Monroe County judge’s ruling allows a gay foster parent here to adopt a teenage boy he has raised since 2001, but does not mean there will be any statewide change in policy. Circuit judges in Florida have twice before found the statute unconstitutional, both in 1991, though both challenges stalled.