Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: WEDNESDAY, January 19, 1994 TAG: 9401190042
SECTION: NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL PAGE: A-3 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: The Washington Post
DATELINE: WASHINGTON LENGTH: Medium
Faulkner, 18, of Powdersville, S.C., said she would begin attending day classes Thursday.
"When I am able to talk to them [male cadets] one-on-one, I hope they will see me as an individual," Faulkner said in a telephone interview after Rehnquist's order.
"I just want to take part in the school, not hurt the school." An education major, Faulkner said she was drawn to the school's well-regarded academic program and influential network of alumni.
Tuesday's order withdrew a Jan. 12 order by Rehnquist that blocked Faulkner from attending classes. The earlier action came within hours of Faulkner's widely reported registration at the Charleston, S.C., campus and after the Citadel had asked the court to intervene. The school said her presence would destroy the 151-year-old college's disciplined military environment and educational mission.
Rehnquist's two-sentence order Tuesday did not explain the latest action. But lawyers for Faulkner and the Justice Department, which had intervened in her behalf, had filed their responses since he had granted the temporary "stay," as it is legally known.
They argued that Faulkner should be permitted to attend the state-run college while her lawsuit is pending. Faulkner contends the prohibition on women violates the constitutional guarantee of equal protection of the laws. A lower court last year ordered Faulkner's admission to day classes pending resolution of the case, and the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, based in Richmond, Va., had affirmed the order. However, the lower courts did not order her admission to the Corps of Cadets or allow her to live in the barracks.
In his arguments to Rehnquist, Solicitor General Drew Days contended that it was unlikely the Citadel would prevail on the merits of the case. He cited a 4th Circuit ruling - left intact by the Supreme Court last May - that rejected a males-only policy at Virginia Military Institute. The court ordered VMI to admit women, become private or set up a comparable program for women, which the school is attempting. The VMI case is still in the courts.
Days also derided the Citadel's insistence that even one woman would upset the atmosphere for 2,000 cadets. Adopting language from the 4th Circuit, he said, "While the presence of a female in the day classes may be disruptive in the first days, an order permitting Faulkner's attendance is not tantamount at this time to integrating or altering the military program at the Citadel."
Faulkner's lawyers told Rehnquist that the Citadel's arguments were based on emotion, not fact.
by CNB