District of Columbia
Gay incumbent challenges petition signatures of gay opponent in ANC race
Rivals clash over Shaw bike lane project
Gay D.C. Advisory Neighborhood Commissioner Michael Eichler, who represents the newly configured ANC Single Member District 2G02 in the city’s Shaw neighborhood, has filed a challenge to the petition signatures of his opponent, gay former Shaw ANC commissioner Alexander ‘Alex’ Padro, before the D.C. Board of Elections.
Eichler and Padro are among at least a dozen confirmed openly LGBTQ candidates running for Advisory Neighborhood Commission seats in the city’s Nov. 8 election, although activists believe there are far more out LGBTQ ANC candidates who have yet to be identified.
Padro told the Washington Blade Eichler has challenged seven signatures of the 32 he obtained from residents of the ANC district. Twenty-five valid signatures are required for an ANC candidate to be placed on the ballot. Padro said he is certain that all but one of the seven challenged signatures will be upheld by the Board of Elections as valid.
“This is not a challenge that will bear fruit,” he said.
“I am challenging his petition because it’s part of the process,” Eichler told the Blade in an email message. “I reviewed the signatures and found some irregularities,” he said. “The only way to resolve those irregularities is through a petition challenge.”
The Board of Elections is scheduled to make a final determination on Sept. 12 on whether the petition challenge will be upheld or turned down.
Eichler and Padro each said the main issue the two have clashed over in the past and that will likely be one of the lead issues before voters in the Shaw ANC election is the D.C. Department of Transportation’s controversial 9th Street, N.W. bike lane project.
Eichler, who describes himself as an environmentalist and advocate for ending what he calls “traffic violence,” has been a leading supporter of the project, among other things, on grounds that it will help curtail a growing number of pedestrian and bicyclist fatalities caused by vehicles operated by reckless drivers.
Padro, who serves as executive director of Shaw Main Streets, a nonprofit group that advocates for Shaw historic preservation and support for community-based businesses, has been a vocal opponent of the project on grounds that it will harm Shaw businesses.
The project, which has the support of D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser, calls for installing a 1.6-mile protected bike lane connecting Florida Avenue/U Street on its north end to Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W., to the south.
Part of the project has already been put in place along 9th Street between T Street and the block where U Street becomes Florida Avenue in the heart of the Shaw business and nightlife district. The area is sometimes referred to as Little Ethiopia because many Ethiopian owned bars and restaurants are located along 9th Street between T and U Streets.
Nellie’s Sports Bar, one of the city’s popular gay bars, is located at the corner of 9th and U Streets.
According to Padro, the installation of the one-block long bike lane on the east side of 9th Street in the Shaw business district involved closing one of the two northbound traffic lanes to make room for the bike lane. He said the change created an immediate hardship for the businesses along the street by eliminating parking spaces and making it difficult for trucks to deliver supplies to the businesses.
He said he met about two weeks ago with representatives of the businesses along the 1900 block of 9th Street, where the bike lane was installed, and was told of the problems they have encountered. “They are already registering losses of sales from 40 to 50 percent,” Padro said. “There will be businesses that will fail.”
Eichler has pointed to studies conducted by the Department of Transportation, known as DDOT, which show removal of the 9th Street traffic lane for vehicles would result in a minimal impact on traffic congestion and instead would lead to lower vehicular speeds, making the street safer for bicyclists, pedestrians, and drivers. Bike lane supporters have also argued that businesses have not been significantly impacted by bike lanes in other parts of the city.
LGBTQ activists have said the LGBTQ community, like city residents in general, is divided over bike lane projects in different parts of the city, including the 17th Street, N.W. commercial strip near Dupont Circle that has several LGBTQ owned and supportive bars and restaurants.
District of Columbia
Gay D.C. police lieutenant arrested on child porn charges
Matthew Mahl once served as head of LGBT Liaison Unit
D.C. police announced on April 14 that they have placed one of their lieutenants, Matthew Mahl, on administrative leave and revoked his police powers after receiving information that he was arrested in Maryland one day earlier.
Although the initial D.C. police announcement doesn’t disclose the reason for the arrest it refers to a statement by the Harford County, Md. Sheriff’s Office that discloses Mahl has been charged with sexual solicitation of a minor and child porn solicitation.
“On Tuesday, the Harford County Sheriff’s Office contacted MPD’s Internal Affairs Division shortly after arresting Lieutenant Matthew Mahl,” the D.C. police statement says.
“The allegations in this case are extremely disturbing, and in direct contrast to the values of the Metropolitan Police Department,” the statement continues. “MPD’s Internal Affairs Division will investigate violations of MPD policy once the criminal investigation concludes,” it says.
“MPD is not involved in the criminal investigation and was not aware of the investigation until yesterday,” the statement adds.
Mahl served as acting supervisor of the MPD’s then Gay & Lesbian Liaison Unit in 2013 when he held the rank of sergeant. D.C. police officials placed him on administrative leave and suspended his police powers that same year while investigating an undisclosed allegation.
A source familiar with the investigation said Mahl was cleared of any wrongdoing a short time later and resumed his police duties. Around the time he was promoted to lieutenant several years later Mahl took on the role as chairman of the D.C. Police Union, becoming the first known openly gay officer to hold that position.
NBC 4 reports that Mahl, 47, has served on the police force for 23 years and most recently was assigned to the department’s Special Operations Division.
Records related to Mahl’s arrest filed in Harford County District Court, show Sheriff’s Department investigators state in charging documents that he allegedly committed the offenses of Sexual Solicitation of a Minor and Child Porn Solicitation on Monday, April 13, one day before he was arrested on April 14.
The court records show he was held without bond during his first appearance in court on April 14. A decision on whether he would be released while awaiting trial or continue to be held without bond was scheduled to be determined during an April 15 bond hearing. The outcome of that hearing could not be immediately determined.
District of Columbia
D.C. bar, LGBTQ+ Community Center to mark Lesbian Visibility Week
‘Ahead of the Curve’ documentary screening, ‘Queeroke’ among events
2026 Lesbian Visibility Week North America will take place from April 20-26.
This year marks the third annual Lesbian Visibility Week, run by the Curve Foundation. A host of events take place from April 20-26.
This year’s theme is Health and Wellness. For the Curve Foundation, the term “lesbian” serves as an umbrella term for a host of identities, including lesbians, bisexual and transgender women, and anyone else connected to the lesbian community.
The week kicks off with a flag-raising ceremony on April 19. It will take place in New York, but will be livestreamed for the public.
“Queeroke” is one of the events being held around the country. It will take place at various participating bars on April 23.
As You Are, an LGBTQ bar in Capitol Hill, is one of eight locations across the U.S. participating. Their event is free and 21+.
On April 24, the D.C. LGBTQ+ Community Center will hold a screening of “Ahead of the Curve,” a documentary about the founder of Curve, Franco Stevens. The event is free with an RSVP.
April 25, is Queer Women in Sports Day. And on April 26, several monuments in New York will be illuminated.
Virtual events ranging from health to sports will be made available to the public. Details will be released closer to the start of Lesbian Visibility Week. Featured events can be found on the official website.
Some ways for individuals to get involved are to use #LVW26 and tag the official Lesbian Visibility Week account on social media posts. People are encouraged to display their lesbian flags, and businesses can hand out pins and decorate. They can also reach out to local lawmakers to encourage them to issue an official Lesbian Visibility Week.
District of Columbia
Whitman-Walker Health to present ‘Pro Bono Excellence’ award to law firm
Health center set to celebrate 40th anniversary of legal services program
Whitman-Walker Health, the D.C.-based community healthcare center that specializes in HIV/AIDS and LGBTQ-related health services, announced it will present its annual Dale Edwin Sanders Award for Pro Bono Excellence to the international law firm McDermott Will & Schulte at a May 6 ceremony.
“This year’s award is especially significant as it coincides with the 40th anniversary of Whitman-Walker Health’s Legal Services Program, marking it as the nation’s longest running medical-legal partnership,” a statement released by Whitman-Walker says.
“As a national leader in public health, Whitman-Walker celebrates our partnership with McDermott to strengthen the health center and to enable Whitman-Walker to reach more medical and legal clients,” the statement adds.
“McDermott’s firm-wide commitment to Whitman-Walker’s medical-legal partnership demonstrates a shared vision to serve those most in need,” Amy Nelson, Whitman-Walker’s director of Legal Services, says in the statement. “Our work protects individuals and families who face discrimination and hostility as they navigate increasingly complex administrative systems,” Nelson said.
“Pro bono legal services – like that of McDermott Will & Schulte – find solutions for people who have no place else to turn in the face of financial and health threats,” she added.
“Our partnership with Whitman-Walker Health is a treasured commitment to serving our neighbors and communities,” Steven Schnelle, one of the law firm’s partners said in the statement. “We are deeply moved by Whitman-Walker’s unwavering dedication to inclusion, respect, and equitable access to health care and social services,” he said.
The statement notes that the award for Pro Bono Excellence honors the legacy of the late gay attorney Dale Edwin Sanders. It says Sanders’s pro bono legal work for Whitman-Walker clients “shaped HIV/AIDS law for more than four decades by securing key victories on behalf of individuals whose employment and patient rights were violated.”
It says the Whitman-Walker Legal Services program began during the early years of the AIDS epidemic in the 1980s at a time when people with AIDS faced widespread discrimination and often needed legal assistance. According to the statement, the program evolved over the years and expanded to advocate for transgender people and immigrants.
Whitman-Walker spokesperson Lisa Amore said the presentation of the Dale Edwin Sanders Pro Bono Excellency Award will be held at the May 6 fundraising benefit for Whitman-Walker’s Legal Services Program. She said the event will take place at the offices of the DC law firm Baker McKenzie and ticket availability can be accessed here: https://www.whitman-walker.org/gtem-2026/
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