JBLM Soldier Suing Trump Over Transgender Ban

From L to R: Ryan Karnoski, 22, of Seattle; Staff Sergeant Cathrine (“Katie”) Schmid, Joint Base Lewis-McChord; and Drew Layne, 16, a high-school student from Corpus Christi, Texas.

LAKEWOOD, WA - Two Puget Sound residents are part of a lawsuit seeking to overturn President Donald Trump's order banning transgender people from serving in the military. The suit is being brought by Lambda Legal and OutServe-SLDN on behalf of three people, including Ryan Karnoski, 22, a Seattle social worker, and Staff Sgt. Katie Schmid, who is stationed at Joint Base Lewis-McChord.

On Friday evening, Trump directed military leaders to stop accepting transgender service members. Trump is leaving it up to each branch of the military whether to expel transgender soldiers who are already serving. Trump first raised the idea of a transgender ban in a series of tweets posted July 26.

The Lambda Legal suit - the American Civil Liberties Union chapter in Maryland also filed a suit against Trump on Monday - argues that Trump's order is discriminatory toward transgender individuals, and is therefore unconstitutional.

“This ban not only wrongfully prevents patriotic, talented Americans from serving, it also compromises the safety and security of our country,” Lambda Legal Senior Attorney Peter Renn said in a press release.

Schmid, who has been in the Army for 12 years, is aspiring to become a Warrant Officer. Karnoski wants to join the military. The third party, 16-year-old Drew Lane of Corpus Christi, Texas, wants to join the Air Force after he graduates.

Also See: White House Releases Guidelines For Trump's Transgender Military Ban

Former Secretary of Defense Ash Carter lifted the ban on transgender service members in June of last year. That move came after the year-long Department of Defense study into how transgender service members affect the military. That study found that medical costs associated with transgender individuals - a common complaint due to medical costs associated with sex-reassignment surgery and other procedures - would be negligible.

Famously, the DoD's study found that Viagra costs the military about $41 million per year, while transgender-related medical care would cost a maximum of about $10 million per year.

In banning transgender service members, Trump argued that Obama administration lifted the ban too soon and without enough study.

"In my judgment, the [Obama Administration] failed to identify a sufficient basis to conclude that terminating the [military's] longstanding policy and practice would not hinder military effectiveness and lethality, disrupt unit cohesion, or tax military resources, and there remain meaningful concerns that further study is needed to ensure that continued implementation of last year's policy change would not have those negative effects," reads Trump's memo, which was released Friday.

Image via Lambda Legal