A Texas jury handed down a sentence of just 10 years probation for the homicide of 32-year old musician Daniel Spencer after a defense attorney argued the “gay panic” defense. The judge felt compelled to strengthen the sentence, adding the maximum allowed, just 6 months in jail, in the trial of 69-year old James Miller.
The jury delivered “not guilty” rulings on the charges of murder and manslaughter. Miller claimed that Spencer came on to him while the two were playing music. Miller’s attorney presented a “self-defense” argument, insisting his client had to take action against Spencer’s supposed sexual advances, despite there being no proof.
“We were playing. We were doing the good music,” Miller said in an affidavit. “We were playing back and forth and everything and I just let him know — Hey, I’m not gay. We been playing. We’re musicians and all that kind of stuff, but I’m not a gay guy. Then it seemed like everything was alright and everything was fine. When I got ready to go — it seemed like [expletive] just started happening.”
Instead of serving up to 10 years in prison, Miller will now serve just 6 months in jail, and 10 years probation for criminally negligent homicide.
News reports describe the murder of Daniel Spencer as “grisly.” Miller, a former Austin police employee, will also have to perform 100 hours of community service, KXAN reports.
Prosecutors “said the evidence does not support the self-defense argument, pointing to blood evidence at the scene they say didn’t match Miller’s story. Further, prosecutors argued it could have been Spencer who turned down Miller’s sexual advances.”
“He had height advantage over me, arm length over me, youth over me,” Miller said, according to the American-Statesman. “I felt he was going to hurt me.”
Miller “testified that he pulled out a knife and twice stabbed Spencer before turning himself in to police.”
The “gay panic” defense, claiming temporary insanity or some other uncontrollable state due to unwanted advances by a person of the same sex is still legal in most of the country.
Image: Screenshot via KXAN