D.C. Council approves bill banning LGBTQ panic defense
By : Lou Chibbaro Jr. OF THE WASHINGTON BLADE, COURTESY OF THE NATIONAL LGBT MEDIA ASSOCIATION December 21, 2020
Share this story:
ABOVE: D.C. Council member Charles Allen (D-Ward 6), photo via Allen’s Facebook page.
The D.C. Council voted unanimously Dec. 15 to give final approval of a bill that bans the use of the so-called gay and transgender panic defense in criminal trials.
A coalition of local LGBTQ advocacy groups that lobbied for the legislation said it is needed to prevent defense attorneys from inappropriately asking juries to find that a victim’s sexual orientation or gender identity or gender expression is to blame for a defendant’s criminal act, including murder.
Councilmember Charles Allen helped push the new hate crime bill through, which bans gay and trans panic defences in Washington DC. (Bill O Leary/The Washington Post via Getty)
Washington DC has voted to ban gay and trans panic defences from being used by attorneys in criminal trials in a landmark win for LGBT+ rights.
Gay and trans panic defences have been heard in courtrooms around the world when a person accused of a violent crime, such as a murder or attempted murder, claims that the shock of finding out a person is LGBT+ pushed them to commit the act.
Attorneys have successfully argued that a person’s sexual orientation or gender identity was to blame for them being attacked, effectively absolving the perpetrator of blame in the process.
D C Council approves bill banning LGBTQ panic defense washingtonblade.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from washingtonblade.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.