Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: MONDAY, February 14, 1994 TAG: 9402140049
SECTION: NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL PAGE: B7 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: CHARLESTON, S.C. LENGTH: Medium
Her attorneys will ask U.S. District Judge C. Weston Houck on Thursday to rule that the corps' all-male admissions policy is unconstitutional. But even if Houck agrees, appeals could keep Faulkner out of the corps for at least two more years.
Faulkner was accepted by the military college last year after she had references to her gender deleted from her high school transcript.
The college withdrew the acceptance upon discovering she was a woman. Faulkner sued, charging that the corps' males-only admissions policy violates the Constitution's equal protection clause.
Houck ruled she could attend classes with cadets, but not live in the barracks or participate in military activities, while her lawsuit is heard.
In Roanoke, court proceedings over Virginia Military Institute's all-male policy continue this week. VMI and The Citadel are the only state-supported, all-male military colleges in the nation.
On Thursday, Faulkner's lawyers also will ask Houck to clarify whether she may participate on The Citadel's newspaper staff and play in its band. The school says those are corps activities not covered by the judge's order.
Her attorney, Suzanne Coe, has asked Houck to rule without a trial. She said she is optimistic about winning after the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals and U.S. Chief Justice William Rehnquist allowed Faulkner into classes.
Coe said there's little a trial could bring out that's not already in witness depositions and other filings. But Citadel attorney Dawes Cooke says allowing the school's witnesses to testify further will give Houck more insight into why its single-sex education provides important benefits to students and should continue.
Faulkner's lowest grade has been a "high B," Coe said. "She's doing very well."
One difference between the VMI and Citadel cases is that, unlike Virginia, the South Carolina Legislature last year went on record endorsing single-sex education as a state policy.
Cooke says that there is not enough demand for an all-women's military college.
But Coe said the legislative resolution wasn't that important.
"Our state legislature has throughout history passed resolutions which have been contrary to the Constitution. One was to secede [from the Union]. We saw how far that got," she said.
by CNB