SEATTLE -- A lesbian flight nurse who was discharged under the "don't ask, don't tell" policy says she expects to be reinstated to the U.S. Air Force reserve by next month at the latest.

Maj. Margaret Witt and her attorneys held a news conference Tuesday at the American Civil Liberties Union of Washington offices, saying that they have heard informally from the Justice Department that it is unlikely the federal government will try to block Witt's reinstatement while government lawyers appeals a federal judge's ruling giving her old job back.

Witt was suspended in 2004 and subsequently discharged after the Air Force learned she had been in a long-term relationship with a civilian woman.

U.S. District Judge Ronald Leighton in Tacoma ruled two months ago that Witt's firing under "don't ask, don't tell" violated her rights, and he ordered that she be given her job back as soon as she met meet qualifications for the position.