1. United States
2. Mich.
3. Letter

Introduce federal legislation banning the trans panic defense. Right now, defendants across the country can argue that a victim's gender identity justifies killing them — and walk away with reduced charges or acquittals. The LGBTQ+ Bar Association defines it plainly: the trans panic defense lets defendants use a victim's identity to reduce or evade criminal liability when the force used wasn't otherwise justifiable. That is not a legitimate legal defense. It is codified prejudice. Read full breakdown here: https://www.erininthemorning.com/p/killing-of-woman-may-have-been-justifiable Twenty states have already banned this tactic, which means the legal groundwork exists and the political will is there. What's missing is a federal floor that protects everyone, regardless of what state they live in. No jury anywhere in this country should be asked to weigh a dead person's gender identity against their killer's claimed fear. Pass a federal ban.