What is "gay panic defense"

n. (context informal legal English) A defence in which self-defence against an unwanted homosexual advance is claimed as the motive for an assault.

The gay panic defense is a legal defense, usually against charges of assault or murder. A defendant using the defense claims that they acted in a state of violent temporary insanity because of a purported psychiatric condition called homosexual panic. Trans panic is a similar defense applied towards cases where the victim is a transgender or intersex person. In 2014, California became the first state in the U.S. to officially ban the use of trans panic and gay panic defenses in murder trials. This defense has only been banned in California, but the American Bar Association has suggested that other states follow California's lead.