{"id":11833,"date":"2018-04-03T21:02:50","date_gmt":"2018-04-03T21:02:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/airforcetimes\/uncategorized\/2018\/04\/03\/air-force-colonels-career-restored-after-same-sex-marriage-discrimination-incident\/"},"modified":"2026-08-07T20:12:35","modified_gmt":"2026-08-07T20:12:35","slug":"air-force-colonels-career-restored-after-same-sex-marriage-discrimination-incident","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/airforcetimes\/news\/2018\/04\/03\/air-force-colonels-career-restored-after-same-sex-marriage-discrimination-incident\/","title":{"rendered":"Air Force colonel\u2019s career restored after same-sex marriage discrimination incident"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The Air Force has ruled that one of its commanders had a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.airforcetimes.com\/news\/your-air-force\/2017\/12\/07\/christian-groups-battle-to-save-colonels-career\/\" title=\"\" class=\"\" target=\"_blank\">right to exercise his religious beliefs<\/a> when he declined to sign a certificate of appreciation for the same-sex spouse of an airman under his command.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.airforcetimes.com\/news\/your-air-force\/2017\/10\/28\/air-force-colonel-appeals-discipline-for-same-sex-marriage-discrimination\/\">Col. Leland Bohannon<\/a>, a Christian, had previously refused to sign a certificate of appreciation for the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.militarytimes.com\/news\/your-military\/2015\/06\/26\/advocates-gay-military-couples-to-see-more-barriers-fall\/\">same-sex spouse<\/a> of a retiring master sergeant in his command.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Last year, the Air Force ruled that the incident was discrimination, and passed Bohannon up for promotion to brigadier general.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Rep. Doug Lamborn, R-Colo., and other lawmakers, sent a letter to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.airforcetimes.com\/news\/your-air-force\/2017\/05\/16\/heather-wilson-sworn-in-as-24th-air-force-secretary\/\" title=\"\" class=\"\" target=\"_blank\">Secretary of the Air Force<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.airforcetimes.com\/news\/your-air-force\/2017\/09\/18\/air-force-secretary-we-are-a-service-that-is-too-small\/\" title=\"\" class=\"\" target=\"_blank\">Heather Wilson<\/a> in December, supporting Bohannon\u2019s bid for a religious accommodation in the case.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In a reversal of fortunes, Wilson responded Monday with <a href=\"https:\/\/lamborn.house.gov\/uploadedfiles\/col._bohannon_response_letter_from_air_force_april_2_2018.pdf\" title=\"\" class=\"\" target=\"_blank\">her own letter<\/a>, notifying Lamborn that the director of the Air Force Review Boards Agency granted Bohannon his appeal.<br><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cThe director concluded that Colonel Bohannon had the right to exercise his sincerely held religious beliefs and did not unlawfully discriminate when he declined to sign the certificate of appreciation for the same-sex spouse of an airman in his command,\u201d <a href=\"https:\/\/lamborn.house.gov\/uploadedfiles\/col._bohannon_response_letter_from_air_force_april_2_2018.pdf\" title=\"\" class=\"\" target=\"_blank\">Wilson wrote<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The letter reaffirmed that the Air Force has a duty to treat people fairly and without discrimination on the basis of race, color, national origin and sexual orientation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In this case, however, that duty was met \u201cby having a more senior officer sign the certificate,\u201d Wilson wrote.<\/p>\n\n\n\t<aside class=\"smg-interstitial-link wp-block-smg-interstitial-link\">\n\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/airforcetimes\/news\/your-air-force\/2017\/11\/26\/republican-senators-support-disciplined-air-force-colonel\/\" class=\"smg-interstitial-link__inner\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"smg-interstitial-link__media\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"300\" height=\"215\" src=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/37943567314_5c6e82df1d_k.jpg.jpg?w=300\" class=\"smg-interstitial-link__image wp-post-image\" alt=\"\" \/>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"smg-interstitial-link__content\">\n\t\t\t\t<span class=\"smg-interstitial-link__kicker\">Related<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t<h3 class=\"smg-interstitial-link__title\">Republican senators support disciplined Air Force colonel<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p class=\"smg-interstitial-link__excerpt\">A group of U.S. senators have signed a letter in support of an airman who says he was wrongly disciplined after refusing to sign a certificate of appreciation to the same-sex spouse of a retiring master sergeant.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/a>\n\t<\/aside>\n\t\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Because the offer for an accommodation was made in this instance, there was no basis for the discrimination claim, according to Mike Berry, deputy general counsel for First Liberty Institute, a religious liberties group that represented Bohannon in his appeal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cThe individual who would have instead signed the airman\u2019s letter would have been a two-star,\u201d Berry said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Now, \u201cthe Air Force is going to clear up [Bohannon\u2019s] service record, and I think after that he is entitled to a review of his possible promotion to brigadier general,\u201d Berry added.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But Mikey Weinstein, founder of the Military Religious Freedom Foundation, an advocacy group dedicated to upholding service members\u2019 Constitutional right of religious freedom, said the decision contradicts one of the Air Force\u2019s core values: \u201cservice before self.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1200\" height=\"987\" src=\"\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Bohannon_Leland_AF_Col.JPG.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-27061\" srcset=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Bohannon_Leland_AF_Col.JPG.jpg 1200w, https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Bohannon_Leland_AF_Col.JPG.jpg?resize=300,247 300w, https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Bohannon_Leland_AF_Col.JPG.jpg?resize=768,632 768w, https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Bohannon_Leland_AF_Col.JPG.jpg?resize=1024,842 1024w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Col. Leland Bohannon, then-vice commander of the 2nd Bomb Wing at Barksdale Air Force Base, La., inspects an inert BDU-50 inside a B-52H Stratofortress in 2015. Bohannon was relieved of command of the the Air Force Inspection Agency at Kirtland Air Force Base, New Mexico, earlier this year.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cThis is nothing more than an attempt to officially condone bigotry,\u201d Weinstein said. \u201cThis is an attempt to subordinate man&#8217;s law to god\u2019s law. Everyone in the military takes an oath to protect the constitution, not the bible.\u201d<br><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">As evidence, Weinstein pointed to Air Force Instruction 1-1, sec. 2.12, which says that \u201cleaders at all levels must balance constitutional protections for their own free exercise of religion, including individual expressions of religious beliefs, and the constitutional prohibition against governmental establishment of religion.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cThey must ensure their words and actions cannot reasonably be construed to be officially endorsing or disapproving of, or extending preferential treatment for any faith, belief, or absence of belief,\u201d according to the regulation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Weinstein added that the AFI was backed up by the 1974 Supreme Court ruling in Parker v. Levy, which held that the need for discipline among service members allows for regulations and rules that are normally prohibited under the Constitution.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cIn the military, there&#8217;s a different compelling governmental interest,\u201d Weinstein said. \u201cThey want to maximize the lethality of the military in order to protect the civil rights of the rest of us. How you do that is by maximizing good order and cohesion in units.\u201d<br><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In her letter, Wilson wrote that \u201cthe decision on appeal applied current Air Force policy and the law.\u201c <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">However, the specific law and policy being referenced is not cited in the letter.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2048\" height=\"1470\" src=\"\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/37943567314_5c6e82df1d_k.jpg.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-27067\" srcset=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/37943567314_5c6e82df1d_k.jpg.jpg 2048w, https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/37943567314_5c6e82df1d_k.jpg.jpg?resize=300,215 300w, https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/37943567314_5c6e82df1d_k.jpg.jpg?resize=768,551 768w, https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/37943567314_5c6e82df1d_k.jpg.jpg?resize=1024,735 1024w, https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/37943567314_5c6e82df1d_k.jpg.jpg?resize=1536,1103 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2048px) 100vw, 2048px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Col. Leland Bohannon, then-2nd Bomb Wing vice commander, waves at a crowd during the 2014 Veterans Day parade at Shreveport, La., Nov. 9, 2014. (Airman 1st Class Mozer Da Cunha\/Air Force)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">At the time of the incident, Bohannon was commanding the Air Force Inspection Agency at <a href=\"https:\/\/www.militarytimes.com\/news\/your-military\/2016\/06\/01\/kirtland-air-force-base-first-in-line-for-new-helicopters\/\" title=\"\" class=\"\" target=\"_blank\">Kirtland Air Force Base<\/a>, New Mexico. While the case was undergoing the review process, he was working at the Pentagon, according to Berry. <br><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Berry cautioned that the review board\u2019s decision did not constitute a judicial precedent, but he said that the outcome should at the very least influence the military to create concrete guidelines to avoid these incidents in the future, while still protecting the First Amendment rights of its service members.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The Air Force has ruled that one of its commanders had a right to exercise his religious beliefs when he declined to sign a certificate of appreciation for the same-sex spouse of an airman under his command.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":27053,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_yoast_wpseo_meta-robots-noindex":"","_yoast_wpseo_meta-robots-nofollow":"","_yoast_wpseo_canonical":"","_acf":"","_yoast_wpseo_primary_category":16,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","_smg_distribution_targets":{"2":{"categories":["your-military","news"],"primary_category":"your-military"}}},"categories":[101,16,26,67],"tags":[],"coauthors":[3277],"class_list":["post-11833","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-daily-news-roundup","category-news","category-newsletters","category-your-air-force"],"acf":{"subheadline":"","legacy_arc_id":"5SW6RFANMJEH7A5FATIGXV6R3Q","arc_canonical_url":"\/news\/your-air-force\/2018\/04\/03\/air-force-colonels-career-restored-after-same-sex-marriage-discrimination-incident\/","remove_feature_photo":false,"is_sponsored":false,"subtype":"","redirect_url":"","disable_inline_ads":false,"native_logo_pretext":"Presented By:"},"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v26.0 (Yoast SEO v28.1) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-premium-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Air Force colonel\u2019s career restored after same-sex marriage discrimination incident - Air Force TImes<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"The Air Force has ruled that one of its commanders had a right to exercise his religious beliefs when he declined to sign a certificate of appreciation for the same-sex spouse of an airman under his command.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"noindex, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Air Force colonel\u2019s career restored after same-sex marriage discrimination incident\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"The Air Force has ruled that one of its commanders 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