LINCOLN, Neb. – Sen. John Cavanaugh has introduced legislation that is being dubbed the “gay panic” bill in the Nebraska legislature. Cavanaugh says the bill, introduced last week, is designed to prevent defending against charges of assault or other violent crime by arguing that discovery of a victim’s gender identity or sexual orientation caused the assailant to lose their mental faculties.

"What it is saying is we would not recognize as a valid affirmative defense a claim that a defendant assaulted someone or killed them or committed some crime because of their discovery of the victim's gender identity, sexual orientation, or even their perception of that person's gender identity or sexual orientation," Cavanaugh said.

Seventeen states and the District of Columbia already have similar statutes in place. The Nebraska legislature saw a similar proposal two years ago, though it did not pass.

“I didn’t invent it,” Cavanaugh said.

Cavanaugh said he cannot pinpoint how many cases have used the defense, mostly because of the way court records reach the public.

“It can be asserted and we won’t know it because the way our records and our courts work we really only have a written record that we all look at when there’s an appeal and that information gets entered into the appellate level,” Cavanaugh said. “Otherwise if there’s a trial court level, which is what this would really apply to, we wouldn’t necessarily know about it as a public…and that’s only when it’s not successful.”

Cavanaugh said the proposed legislation goes beyond the legal component.

“It’s not just the legal argument, but it is a point about recognizing the inherent value of all lives of individuals and making sure that we are protecting all Nebraskans,” Cavanaugh said.