President Donald Trump speaks before Robert F. Kennedy Jr., is sworn in as HHS Secretary in the Oval Office, Thursday, Feb. 13, 2025, in Washington (Photo/Alex Brandon).
The Trump administration unlawfully removed two transgender men from the U.S. Air Force using the president’s “unconstitutional” executive order — banning transgender military members — “under the cloud of being suddenly deemed unfit” by administration officials, despite each of them having “years of unblemished and decorated service” on their record, a judge ruled Monday.
U.S. District Judge Christine O’Hearn has become the latest person on the federal bench to side with challenges made in recent weeks against Trump’s executive order, which calls for transgender people to be banned from military service after “years” of being allowed to openly serve, according to O’Hearn, who is a judge in the District of New Jersey. U.S. District Judge Ana Reyes issued a preliminary injunction last Wednesday in the District of Columbia, halting the transgender ban in a case where Trump’s order was attacked in a lawsuit filed on Jan. 28 by service members.
The complaint argued that the ban on transgender service members violates the due process clause of the Fifth Amendment by discriminating against people “based on their sex and based on their transgender status.”
In explaining how the military ban discriminated on the basis of sex, O’Hearn — a Joe Biden appointee — said that the plaintiffs, Master Sgt. Logan Ireland and Staff Sgt. Nicholas Bear Bade, were pulled from their assignments and forced into administrative absence. This led to them facing “imminent involuntary administrative separation proceedings” that would cause “lasting damage” to their “otherwise exemplary” military careers and reputations, O’Hearn ruled.
“Being summarily and involuntarily dismissed from military service after years of unblemished and decorated service under the cloud of being suddenly deemed unfit and disqualified for military service for no reason other than one’s gender identity is irreparable harm,” O’Hearn said. “The loss of military service under the stigma of a policy that targets gender identity is not merely a loss of employment; it is a profound disruption of personal dignity, medical continuity, and public service.”
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For her decision in the Washington case, Judge Reyes — who is also a Joe Biden appointee — cited the U.S. Supreme Court’s landmark 2020 decision in Bostock v. Clayton County. The court held that the prohibition on sex discrimination in Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 included discrimination based on sexual orientation and transgender status. The majority opinion was penned by Justice Neil Gorsuch, who was appointed to the court by Trump.
O’Hearn said Monday that granting temporary relief to Ireland and Bade is ultimately “in the public interest” as it prevents “unconstitutional discrimination” and maintains the status quo of policies that have “now governed the military for years.”
“In contrast, Defendants have not demonstrated any compelling justification whatsoever for immediate implementation of the Orders,” O’Hearn said. “Particularly since transgender persons have been openly serving in the military for a number of years.”
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The Trump administration has previously asserted that the court should defer to the Executive Branch on military matters, but Reyes emphasized in her ruling that the Justice Department was not seeking “judicial deference to military judgment” — rather, it was urging “judicial abdication.” The administration’s transgender ban was scheduled to go into effect this month. The Trump administration has previously asserted that the court should defer to the Executive Branch on military matters, but Reyes emphasized in her ruling that the Justice Department was not seeking “judicial deference to military judgment” — rather, it was urging “judicial abdication.” The administration’s transgender ban was scheduled to go into effect this month.
“Plaintiffs face further imminent harm in the form of involuntary separation proceedings expected to begin as early as March 26,” O’Hearn said Monday. “These harms are immediate, ongoing, and significant, and cannot be remedied in the ordinary course of litigation. Accordingly, a TRO against Defendants, as provided below, is necessary until the Court can consider Plaintiffs’ forthcoming motion for a preliminary injunction.”
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Jerry Lambe contributed to this report.
