Partial Win for Soldier Who Wore Uniform in Gay Porn

Even though gay soldiers are now allowed to serve openly in the military, the U.S. Navy-Marine Corps Court of Criminal Appeals wants you to know that the repeal of "don't ask, don't tell" is not meant to imply an "anything goes" attitude in regard to serving your country. For example, if you're planning on appearing in a pornographic movie, please leave at least part of your uniform at home.

In a recent court case, reported on Suits & Sentences, Marine Corps sergeant Matthew W. Simmons pleaded guilty to misusing various pieces of his military garb by wearing them in a series of gay porn videos.

This past week, however, an appeals court set aside part of his conviction after it was determined that at no time did Simmons, an active-duty bandsman, wear his entire uniform, so the court says that does not constitute misuse.

According to the court's seven-page decision, "[Simmons] took leave to appear in several commercial pornographic videos that involved sodomy with numerous other men, by his own account being paid $10,000.00 for his performances. Some of the videos included shots of him wearing his Marine dress blue coat with the Marine Corps device, decorations, and rank insignia affixed; others showed him wearing a Marine physical training jacket; and at one point he mentioned that he was a Marine. Out-takes from the videos were used to advertise the videos on a website, and one of those out-takes showed [him] wearing the blue coat."

But the court decided that the incompleteness of Simmons's uniform meant the video did not imply an official Marine endorsement of porn:

"The appellant never wore a complete 'uniform,' so the general public could never receive 'visual evidence of the authority and responsibility vested in the individual by the United States Government.' He did not voice any Marine support for what he was doing or any service views on the propriety or impropriety of his conduct."

The decision of the appeals court evidently rules out any punitive discharge and calls for resentencing on the remaining charges.

Read more here.