"Don't ask, don't tell" activist dies in traffic accident

PITTSFORD, N.Y. Darren Manzella, a gay combat medic discharged from the Army after criticizing the military's `don't ask, don't tell' policy in a 2007 television interview, has died in a traffic accident in western New York. He was 36.

His aunt, Robin Mahoney, on Friday confirmed his death. Manzella lived in the Chautauqua County town of Portland; he and his partner were married in July.

The Monroe County Sheriff's Office said Manzella was driving on Interstate 490 in suburban Rochester about 8:30 p.m. Thursday when his vehicle sideswiped a car. Deputies said he stopped his vehicle, got out and began pushing the car from behind. He was then hit by an SUV, pinning him between the two vehicles. He died at the scene.

Manzella's December 2007 appearance on "60 Minutes" from the combat zone in Iraq was followed by his discharge in June 2008 for "homosexual admission," a violation of the since-rescinded policy prohibiting service members from openly acknowledging they are gay.

After the television appearance and his return from Iraq, Manzella did media interviews, each a potential violation of the policy.

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"This is who I am. This is my life," Manzella said at a Washington news conference before his discharge. "It has never affected my job performance before. I don't think it will make a difference now. And to be honest since then, I don't see a difference because of my homosexuality."

Manzella said he first told a military supervisor about his sexual orientation in August 2006, while working in a division headquarters at Fort Hood, Texas. Three weeks later, his battalion commander told him an investigation had been closed without finding "proof of homosexuality." A month later, he was sent to Iraq.

His supporters said the overseas assignment demonstrated how the military was arbitrarily enforcing the "don't ask, don't tell" policy during the war.

Manzella enlisted in the Army in 2002. He was awarded the Combat Medical Badge for service in Iraq. When he was discharged, he was a sergeant serving at Fort Hood with the 1st Cavalry Division.

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"Don't ask, don't tell" activist dies in traffic accident

PITTSFORD, N.Y. Darren Manzella, a gay combat medic discharged from the Army after criticizing the military's `don't ask, don't tell' policy in a 2007 television interview, has died in a traffic accident in western New York. He was 36.

His aunt, Robin Mahoney, on Friday confirmed his death. Manzella lived in the Chautauqua County town of Portland; he and his partner were married in July.

The Monroe County Sheriff's Office said Manzella was driving on Interstate 490 in suburban Rochester about 8:30 p.m. Thursday when his vehicle sideswiped a car. Deputies said he stopped his vehicle, got out and began pushing the car from behind. He was then hit by an SUV, pinning him between the two vehicles. He died at the scene.

Manzella's December 2007 appearance on "60 Minutes" from the combat zone in Iraq was followed by his discharge in June 2008 for "homosexual admission," a violation of the since-rescinded policy prohibiting service members from openly acknowledging they are gay.

After the television appearance and his return from Iraq, Manzella did media interviews, each a potential violation of the policy.

Play Video

"This is who I am. This is my life," Manzella said at a Washington news conference before his discharge. "It has never affected my job performance before. I don't think it will make a difference now. And to be honest since then, I don't see a difference because of my homosexuality."

Manzella said he first told a military supervisor about his sexual orientation in August 2006, while working in a division headquarters at Fort Hood, Texas. Three weeks later, his battalion commander told him an investigation had been closed without finding "proof of homosexuality." A month later, he was sent to Iraq.

His supporters said the overseas assignment demonstrated how the military was arbitrarily enforcing the "don't ask, don't tell" policy during the war.

Manzella enlisted in the Army in 2002. He was awarded the Combat Medical Badge for service in Iraq. When he was discharged, he was a sergeant serving at Fort Hood with the 1st Cavalry Division.

View the original article here

"Don't ask, don't tell" activist dies in traffic accident

PITTSFORD, N.Y. Darren Manzella, a gay combat medic discharged from the Army after criticizing the military's `don't ask, don't tell' policy in a 2007 television interview, has died in a traffic accident in western New York. He was 36.

His aunt, Robin Mahoney, on Friday confirmed his death. Manzella lived in the Chautauqua County town of Portland; he and his partner were married in July.

The Monroe County Sheriff's Office said Manzella was driving on Interstate 490 in suburban Rochester about 8:30 p.m. Thursday when his vehicle sideswiped a car. Deputies said he stopped his vehicle, got out and began pushing the car from behind. He was then hit by an SUV, pinning him between the two vehicles. He died at the scene.

Manzella's December 2007 appearance on "60 Minutes" from the combat zone in Iraq was followed by his discharge in June 2008 for "homosexual admission," a violation of the since-rescinded policy prohibiting service members from openly acknowledging they are gay.

After the television appearance and his return from Iraq, Manzella did media interviews, each a potential violation of the policy.

Play Video

"This is who I am. This is my life," Manzella said at a Washington news conference before his discharge. "It has never affected my job performance before. I don't think it will make a difference now. And to be honest since then, I don't see a difference because of my homosexuality."

Manzella said he first told a military supervisor about his sexual orientation in August 2006, while working in a division headquarters at Fort Hood, Texas. Three weeks later, his battalion commander told him an investigation had been closed without finding "proof of homosexuality." A month later, he was sent to Iraq.

His supporters said the overseas assignment demonstrated how the military was arbitrarily enforcing the "don't ask, don't tell" policy during the war.

Manzella enlisted in the Army in 2002. He was awarded the Combat Medical Badge for service in Iraq. When he was discharged, he was a sergeant serving at Fort Hood with the 1st Cavalry Division.

View the original article here

Activist jailed for bare breasts in Spring Lake released, officials say

FREEHOLD TOWNSHIP — A 33-year-old New York activist who gained national attention when she refused to pay a fine for baring her breasts in Spring Lake in 2008 was released Wednesday morning from the Monmouth County jail, authorities said.

Phoenix Feeley was released ?on time allotted,? according to Cynthia Scott, a spokeswoman for the Monmouth County Sheriff?s Department.

?I can confirm that she was released from the jail at 9 a.m. this morning,? Scott told the Asbury Park Press on Wednesday night.

Feeley?s jail time stemmed from her refusal to pay an $816 fine for removing her bikini top at the Salem Avenue beach in Spring Lake and sunbathing topless in June 2008, according to the Spring Lake Police Department arrest report.

She was issued summonses for violating the borough?s dressing and undressing ordinance, disorderly conduct and obstructing administrative law. After being released and given a court date, she shed her top again that same day, along Third Avenue, and was arrested again on disorderly conduct charges, according to the report.

Feeley had entered her 10th day in the Monmouth County jail when she was released. As of Saturday, she had been on a hunger strike, officials said.

During her sentencing Aug. 8, Feeley told Municipal Judge George C. Pappas that none of her inmate rights were being upheld, the prison?s conditions regarding food, water and her cell were inhumane, and that she been denied access to a grievance form, a library, a lawyer and a phone call.

On Saturday, Scott stated all of the comments Feeley made during that hearing, in regards to the correctional facility, were false.

Feeley was being offered three meals per day, along with additional supplemental drinks, which she refused, Scott said previously.

She was moved into the facility?s infirmary because of her hunger strike, Scott said, and her vital signs were being checked regularly.

?When it comes to the food at the facility, the menu is designed and approved by a licensed dietician every 30 days,? Scott said previously.

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