Group wants slain soldier's sexuality to be part of inquiry

As the military investigates the death of Army National Guard Cpl. Ciara Durkin in Afghanistan, the Servicemembers Legal Defense Network wants to make sure it focuses on a facet of Durkin's life she couldn't highlight as a soldier: She was gay.

The organization says Durkin was the first openly gay soldier killed in the U.S. war in Afghanistan.

Shortly after it became public that the Quincy resident was killed by a single gunshot to the head at Bagram Air Base, the Washington-based legal organization raised the possibility that her death could have been a hate crime. Family members said Ciara was open about being a lesbian. But during a visit home to Quincy in September, she had talked about ''making enemies'' because of things she learned working in a finance unit on the base, not because of her sexual orientation.

Steve Ralls, a spokesman for the Servicemembers Legal Defense Network, said: ''We do not have any evidence at the moment that indicates Ciara was targeted because of her sexual orientation, but there is nothing to rule out that possibility.''

Ralls said his organization hopes to help investigators by offering a conduit to soldiers who may know something about Durkin's death but are afraid that revealing it to investigators could result in suspicion about their own sexual identities.

Even though official policy discourages gays from joining the military - and orders those already in the service to keep quiet about it - a study based on the 2000 Census and military demographics estimates that Durkin was among 65,000 gay or lesbian active service members, Ralls said.

In her civilian life, Durkin was an active member of Boston's gay community, along with her younger brother, Pierce Durkin. Family members said Ciara had planned to marry her longtime girlfriend when her tour or duty in Afghanistan was over.

Pierce Durkin is a member of the board of Boston Pride, an organization that hosts the city's gay pride festival and parade every year.

Linda DeMarco, president of the board of Boston Pride, said Ciara Durkin was a prized volunteer.

''She would do anything you asked for. She was one of those volunteers who would never ask you why you wanted her to do something. She just did it,'' DeMarco said.

Her military service fit in with her desire to help others, DeMarco added.

''She wanted to go there, she liked the discipline of the National Guard and she wanted to give to her country. She will be a big loss to her unit and all her friends here.''

Durkin's death may mark a turning point in the recognition of the sacrifices gays in the military are making, Ralls said.

Marine Staff Sgt. Eric Alva, 36, now retired, was the first person wounded on the first day of the current war in Iraq. On March 21, 2003, he stepped on a landmine, losing his right leg. Alva is gay, a fact that was known to a handful of people in his unit.

This past March, he came out to the rest of the world, testifying with former U.S. Rep. Martin Meehan, D-Lowell, in favor of the Military Readiness Enhancement Act, a bill Meehan filed that would allow gays and lesbians to serve openly in the military.

Now a full-time activist seeking the inclusion of openly gay people in the military, Alva said he mentions Durkin in his speeches.

He said people often ask him, ''Why would you put yourself in that predicament?'' - joining the military knowing he could face scrutiny because he is gay.

A member of a military family - his grandfather served in World War II and his father served in Vietnam - Alva said his first priority was to serve.

''My response has always been I wanted to do it regardless of the stresses that were going to be out there for me,'' he said. ''It was all focused on my job and what I needed to do to accomplish my goal.''

Alva said coming out, or revealing that he is gay, to other Marines was always a positive experience. But he was highly selective in whom he trusted. He only told Marines he had known for a long time.

His longtime friends were not fazed by his revelation. Three of his fellow Marines later asked him to be godfather to their sons, he said.

Despite the military policy, many gay service members serve relatively openly.

Ralls of the Servicemembers Legal Defense Network said his organization is aware of 500 service members who are serving openly.

''Their command is refusing to dismiss them from the armed forces, and retaining them for duty,'' he said. ''There is a growing climate of acceptance and welcoming of gay troops, which is no doubt based on the military's need for good people right now.''

In January, Gen. John Shalikashvili, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff from 1993 to 1997 and a proponent of the ''don't ask, don't tell'' policy, wrote in a New York Times op-ed piece that gay men and lesbians can serve openly in the military without undermining the effectiveness of U.S. forces.

Still, there are indications that many in the military are not comfortable with gays and lesbians serving openly.

In a poll of active service members by Zogby International, released in December, 37 percent of those surveyed said homosexuals should not be allowed to serve openly in the military, while 26 percent said they should. The rest said they were ''neutral'' or unsure.

Of those who said they thought they had served with a gay man or lesbian in their unit, 66 percent said morale did not suffer.

''Overall, this survey paints a mixed picture for the future of gays and lesbians in the military. While overwhelming majorities display tolerance ... there are still large obstacles that must be overcome,'' the authors of the survey report wrote.

A funeral for Durkin will be held in her native Ireland on Saturday. Some of her ashes will be buried there at the cemetery where her father is buried. A funeral was held for her in Quincy last Saturday.

Probe continues

Aug. 28:

-Spc. Ciara Durkin found fatally shot in the head on a U.S. base in Afghanistan.

Oct. 3:

-Family presses military for answers.

Saturday:

-Funeral Mass to be celebrated in her native Ireland.

Julie Jette of The Patriot Ledger (Quincy, Mass.) may be reached at jjette@ledger.com.