A gay sailor whose death is being called a hate crime by his family is being buried in Houston on Friday.
Seaman August Provost III was found shot multiple times on June 30 as he stood guard at Camp Pendleton north of
San Diego. Investigators are calling his death a random act unrelated
to the 29-year-old’s sexuality.
But Provost’s family says
he had complained a year before about being harassed for being gay and
the military’s “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” policy discouraged him from
asking for help. The Houston native joined the Navy in March 2008.
Democratic Rep. Bob Filner of San Diego has called for a Defense
Department probe into the death, after leaders of the city’s gay
community asked him to intervene.
