PITTSFORD, N.Y. — Darren Manzella, a gay combat medic discharged from the Army after criticizing the military’s “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy in a 2007 television interview, has died in a traffic accident in western New York. He was 36.

The Monroe County Sheriff’s Office said Manzella was driving Thursday in suburban Rochester when his vehicle sideswiped a car. He got out and was hit by an SUV, pinning him between the two vehicles.