Metro Weekly

Gov’t Loses Request to Put LCR’s DADT Case on Hold

In a Friday evening ruling issued by the clerk’s office for the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, the government’s attempt to put the Log Cabin Republicans’ challenge to “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” on hold was denied.

LCR had opposed the motion in a filing earlier this month.

In the brief order in Log Cabin Republicans v. United States, however, the court also granted the government’s request for additional time to prepare its briefing.

The order stated:

The opposed motion to hold these appeals in abeyance is denied. The briefing schedule is reset as follows: the government’s opening brief and excerpts of record are due February 25, 2011; Log Cabin Republicans’ answering brief and supplemental excerpts of record are due March 28, 2011; and the government’s reply brief is due 14 days after service of the answering brief.

As such, briefing would be completed no later than April 11. At some point after that reply brief filing, the Ninth Circuit will decide whether oral argument will be held on the case, and, if so, schedule it.

The loss came on the heels of the Friday statement about the ongoing enforcement of DADT at a Pentagon news conference. Undersecretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness Clifford Stanley there told reporters, “It is still possible for a person to be discharged [under DADT]. I have heard nothing about a moratorium.”

Read the court’s order: lcr.pdf

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