A second man charged in the beating death of a Fort Campbell soldier was the dead man's roommate and the person who, perhaps unintentionally, brought Pvt. Barry Winchell into his first gay relationship, Winchell's boyfriend said yesterday.

Winchell, 21, died after a July 5 attack in his barracks. Two soldiers have been charged in connection with the incident. A local gay rights group has encouraged Army officials to investigate the death as a possible hate crime.

On the post, rumors of Winchell's homosexuality foreshadowed the attack, said Calpernia Addams, who said he had dated Winchell since late March.

Addams said he and Winchell were introduced by the man now accused of encouraging the beating.

Specialist Justin R. Fisher, 25, was charged with four related offenses over the weekend, said Maj. Pamela Hart, a Fort Campbell spokeswoman. The charges say Fisher encouraged Pvt. Calvin Glover, 18, to strike Winchell, acted as an accessory after the fact, lied to investigators under oath and obstructed the investigation.

Glover, 18, who was assigned to Winchell's infantry regiment, already had been charged with premeditated murder in the attack.

It was Fisher who first introduced Winchell to The Connection, a gay nightclub in Nashville, Addams said. Addams said Fisher had already been to the club and talked to his buddies about a female impersonation act Addams performs on stage there.

The next night, Fisher, Winchell and two other soldiers came to the club, Addams said. Addams said he and Winchell hit it off. Winchell had said it was his first relationship with a man, Addams said.

Although Winchell later mentioned that other soldiers asked him if he was gay, he didn't appear threatened, Addams said. "He would mention (the questions) to me and kind of avert his eyes," he said. "He was playing the macho boyfriend."

While Army officials continue what they describe as an "aggressive and thorough investigation," Nashville's Lesbian and Gay Coalition for Justice has scheduled a memorial service today at 7 p.m. in the Centennial Park bandshell.

Coalition co-chairman Bill Turner said his group distributed fliers about today's memorial service on the post, although he was not sure if any soldiers planned to attend.

More than 400 people went to an earlier service held at Fort Campbell in Winchell's honor.