A lesbian army officer in the U.K. who was accused of engaging in an “inappropriate relationship” on the front line has charged the Ministry of Defence with unfairly targeting her because she’s gay.
In addition to being sent home early from a tour in Afghanistan, which left her feeling “deeply ashamed,” The Telegraph reports that Capt. Karen Tait, 29, is claiming she was stripped of her warrant card and not allowed to attend memorial services for close colleagues who were killed in the line of duty.
Defending a charge of “social misconduct” during her military tour, Tait admitted to having been romantically involved with a fellow soldier, Sgt. Caroline Graham, in 2009, but claims the relationship was “on hold” during the time the two were in Afghanistan.
Her commanding officers, however, have accused Tait of not only authorizing a move for Graham from her post at Kandahar to Tait’s own location at Camp Bastian but also changing the leave schedules so the pair could have overlapping time off.
Even though the two women shared a tent during their stay, Tait insists that she “did not have any intimacy with Caroline of any sort. There was no deliberate physical contact.”
While testifying at the Central London Employment Tribunal, Tait said, “The first respondent [Lt. Col. Poneskis] didn't like me because I was gay,” adding that “she said I had lost the trust and the confidence of herself and the OC. I was devastated at being removed from my post.”
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