She was one of a record 44 deaths tallied in 2020 by the Human Rights Campaign, a national advocacy group for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and questioning (LGBTQ) people. No one has been arrested in connection with the case. She was attending a vigil for another homicide victim. Though Senate Bill 704 does not bear anyone’s name unlike bills in other states, its passage comes less than a year after the stabbing death of Aja Raquell Rhone-Stevens, a 32-year-old transgender woman, in July 2020 in Northeast Portland. The Senate passed it, 29-1, on April 14 Republican Dallas Heard of Roseburg was the lone opponent.
Oregon would join 13 other states, plus Washington, D.C., with similar laws. A person would not be justified in using physical force against another person upon discovery of the victim’s sexual orientation or gender identity. The bill would bar the discovery of a victim’s sexual orientation or gender identity as a reasonable explanation for someone undergoing an extreme emotional disturbance as an affirmative defense to second-degree murder. The Oregon House passed Senate Bill 704 without amendment on a 54-0 vote Thursday, May 13. ( PORTLAND TRIBUNE) - A suspect could not assert so-called “gay panic” as a legal defense against second-degree murder in Oregon under a bill that is headed to Gov.
