New Jersey takes step toward banning 'gay panic' murder defense
Source: Politico
TRENTON — New Jersey could soon bar a legal defense tactic in murder cases known as “gay panic,“ under a bill the state Assembly approved on Monday without opposition or debate.
The defense has been used to attempt to downgrade charges against defendants who argued that they killed because they were provoked by the disclosure of the victim’s gender identity or sexual orientation.
According to the American Bar Association, eight states had barred the “gay panic” defense as of July 2019. New York was the most recent to do so, in June, when Gov. Andrew Cuomo signed a bill on the 50th anniversary of the Stonewall uprising.
The tactic seeks to exploit a state law that allows for the reduction of a murder charge to manslaughter if the crime is "is committed in the heat of passion resulting from a reasonable provocation."
Read more: https://www.politico.com/states/new-jersey/story/2019/11/25/new-jersey-takes-step-toward-banning-gay-panic-murder-defense-1229407
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Where people can murder someone upon finding out they're a bigot? 
That could be self-defense if the bigot is about to kill you.
