A Washington, D.C., man plead guilty after being charged with the murder of a transgender person last summer, reports the Washington Post. Derrick A. Lewis, 23, was charged with the murder of Aaryn Marshall. Lewis plead to the lesser charge of voluntary manslaughter while armed.
The West Virginia Supreme Court has agreed to hear a case involving the parenting rights of gay couples, reports AP. Tina Burch’s partner died in a car accident in 2002. Relatives of the deceased took the toddler from Burch only hours after the death. A lower court ruled that West Virginia law does not allow for unmarried homosexuals to gain custody. The state supreme court ruled 3-2 to give temporary custody back to Burch until the case is heard.
A Tennessee woman who claimed her lesbian lover murdered an 80-year-old Michigan woman was convicted of murder and other felony charges, reports WKRN and the Flint Journal. Kimberly Morgan confessed on video that she murdered the woman for her car. In court, Morgan said she was trying to save Savannah Liddell, her lover, from a prison sentence. The two allegedly stole the car so they could kill the father of Liddell’s children. Morgan will serve a mandatory life in prison without the possibility of parole.
Michigan voters will be able to weigh in on gay marriage this November, reports AP. The conservative Citizens for the Protection of Marriage gathered more than the required 317,757 signatures to put a referendum on the ballot, but the state board of canvassers were deadlocked along party lines so the referendum was not certified. An appeals court cleared the way for the vote. The measure says the state will only recognize unions between a man and a woman. Critics say the language is so broad that it could force universities and other state agencies to stop benefits for domestic partners.