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Bookmark Article Republican governor of Vermont Phill Scott signs legislation on 5 May 2021 that prohibits the use of the LGBT+ "panic" defence in the state. (YouTube/Gov. Phil Scott) Vermont has banned gay and trans panic defences, marking a major victory for the state’s LGBT+ community. Republican governor Phil Scott signed H 128 into law on Wednesday (5 May) after the state legislature nearly unanimously passed it earlier this year. The legislation prohibits the usage of a victim’s gender identity or sexual orientation as a justification for the criminal actions of a defendant. The dec...

'Panic' defense has been used successfully Across the country, juries have acquitted dozens of murderers of their crimes through a defense team's use of the "panic" defense, according to The National LGBT Bar Association. One of the most recognized cases, the LGBT Bar says on its website, is that of Matthew Shepard. a 21-year-old college student in Wyoming who was beaten to death by two men in 1998. The men attempted to use the LGBTQ+ "panic" defense to excuse their actions, and the defense is still being used today, despite public protest, according to the LGBT Bar. Vermont bill leaves no r...

Vermont Gov. Phil Scott (R) signed legislation on Wednesday that bans the use of the so-called “gay panic” defense in courts of law. “With this legislation, Republicans, Democrats and Progressives alike send a message to Vermonters–that your identity should never be an excuse for someone to cause you harm,” the two-term Republican said in a message upon signing the historic legislation. “What this bill does is make sure a victim’s sexual orientation or gender identity can’t be used to defend or justify a criminal act, or lower a sentence.” The defense is a legal strategy us...

Don't miss the big stories. Like us on Facebook.   MONTPELIER — The House version of a bill establishing a task force to implement new per-pupil weighting factors to be used in the state’s public school funding formula passed out of the Education Committee on Thursday morning. The bill, S. 13, now heads to the Ways & Means Committee for review. It’s likely to come to the floor next week, as the legislature is seeking to adjourn by May 22. A side-by-side comparison produced by legislative counsel for the Education Committee shows how the House proposes to amend the Senate ver...

For Jasmine Klein, life in Vermont's prisons has been a punishment beyond her sentence. Last November, Klein, a transgender woman, was transferred to Chittenden Regional...