As I am sure you likewise suspected, he didn't choose this attorney out of the yellow pages; he either already had contacts with him (living in the Tenderloin) or his friends/associates/partners recommended him.
That is why I am speculating this isn't the real reason he wanted out - he findly found a place/community where he feels at home and doesn't want to leave. Unfortunately, publicly declaring at 20 "I'm gay" doesn't have the same impact as declaring yourself as the first objector without a conscience.
A coward, plain and simple.