The Virginia Capitol. (Washington Blade photo by Michael Key)
The Virginia Senate approved a bill Feb. 25 that would ban the so-called LGBTQ panic defense in the state.
The bill, sponsored by state Del. Danica Roem (D-Manassas), was approved by the Senate by a 23-15 vote margin. The Senate version of the bill now heads back to the House of Delegates for consideration.
According to the LGBT Bar Association, the LGBTQ panic defense has been banned in 11 states and D.C. Similar measures have been introduced in Maryland, Virginia and 10 other states and Congress.
“There are many people I’ll need to thank after we vote on final passage tomorrow in the House for my bill to ban the LGBTQ+ panic defense in Virginia,” Roem tweeted before recognizing Judy Shepard, mother of Matthew Shepard, a gay college student who was murdered in Wyoming in 1998. “But after our victory in the state Senate today, my heart’s with @WyoJudyShepard & @MattShepardFDN. Thank you so, so much.”
