EXCLUSIVE: Pete Hegseth Hit With New Lawsuit — Top Marine Claims Transgender Military Crackdown Cost Her Rank and Lifetime Retirement Pay
Pete Hegseth has been hit with a new federal lawsuit from a decorated Marine officer who claims his transgender military policy cost her rank and lifetime retirement pay.
Aug. 31 2026, Published 5:20 p.m. ET
Pete Hegseth has been hit with a new federal lawsuit from a decorated Marine officer who claims the Trump administration's transgender military crackdown cost her rank, career, and lifetime retirement pay, RadarOnline.com can reveal.
Lt. Col. Avery A. Trainor filed the explosive 31-page lawsuit against the United States, Hegseth, the Department of the Navy and Acting Navy Secretary Hung Cao in Washington, D.C., on Monday, August 31.
Top Marine Takes Pete Hegseth to Court
Hegseth is being sued by Lt. Col. Avery A. Trainor over a military policy she claims forced her into early retirement.
According to court documents obtained by Radar, Trainor is a 48-year-old active-duty Marine who has served for more than 27 years and currently holds the rank of lieutenant colonel.
The veteran officer, who is a transgender woman, claims her military career is being brought to an "abrupt end" under a policy implemented by Hegseth targeting service members with a current or previous diagnosis of gender dysphoria. Trainor alleges she had initially been approved to retire on June 1, 2027 – a timeline that would have allowed her to retire at the rank and pay of lieutenant colonel.
But according to the complaint, military officials changed course on May 29, 2026, moving her retirement date forward to November 1.
Trainor claims the decision leaves her without the required time in grade to retire as a lieutenant colonel, meaning she would instead retire as a major and receive reduced retirement pay for the rest of her life.
Lt. Col. Avery A. Trainor's Military Details
Trainor has served in the Marine Corps for more than 27 years and claims the disputed policy abruptly ended her military career.
The lawsuit claims the move effectively "busted" Trainor down in rank and subjected her to an exit normally associated with misconduct cases.
She further claims she is the highest-ranking Marine Corps officer currently subject to the transgender military policy. The lawsuit paints a different picture of Trainor's military record.
Trainor served as an enlisted Marine before becoming an officer, deployed to Afghanistan in 2012, and has received numerous decorations, including the Meritorious Service Medal and Afghanistan Campaign Medal.
Career Derailed?
Trainor claims Hegseth’s policy will force her to retire as a major instead of a lieutenant colonel, reducing her lifetime retirement pay.
According to the lawsuit, her reviewing officer called her the "epitome of a Marine Officer" and recommended she be promoted and selected for command.
Trainor claims she had intended to remain in the Marine Corps for another eight to 10 years and pursue promotion to colonel before the policy derailed those plans.
She also challenges the military's decision to assign her an RE-3G reenlistment code, which the lawsuit says signifies a condition interfering with a service member's performance of duty.
Lt. Col. Avery A. Trainor Demands Retirement Decision Be Reversed
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The Marine officer is asking a federal judge to block the policy as applied to her and restore her June 2027 retirement date.
She insists her prior gender dysphoria diagnosis never impaired her ability to perform her job and argues the designation could carry lasting professional consequences because reenlistment and separation codes appear on military discharge documents.
Trainor is asking a federal judge to declare the policy unconstitutional as applied to her and block officials from enforcing the disputed retirement action.
She also wants her June 2027 retirement restored, allowing her to retire as a lieutenant colonel, and is seeking to return to full active-duty status while the case plays out.
