Washington
Legal Help Desk
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Victory! Court Orders U.S. Military to Immediately Halt Ban of Transgender Troops
All government employees are protected by the U.S. Constitution against irrational discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity. In addition, some measure of protection already exists under Title VII based on gender, which has been held to include gender identity and expression.
The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) and several courts have interpreted Title VII to protect LGBT employees. Lambda Legal maintains that the EEOC adjudications regarding Title VII’s coverage should supersede contrary authority that exists in some federal circuits.
YES, Washington has a criminal law that punishes people with an HIV diagnosis specifically for nondisclosure of HIV status prior to sexual conduct. A violation of this statute is classified as a felony.
YES, in recent years, there has been at least one criminal prosecution for HIV nondisclosure in Washington.
NO, Washington does not have laws that criminalize or enhance penalties for biting, spitting and/or throwing bodily fluids or substances (such as urine or excrement) if a person has been diagnosed with HIV, but that does not mean the state could not prosecute a person engaged in such activities under general criminal laws or argue for sentence enhancements based on the person’s HIV diagnosis.
NO, Washington does not have laws that enhance penalties for HIV-positive people involved in commercial sexual transactions, but that does not mean that a prosecutor could not argue for an enhanced sentence in such a situation based on the defendant’s HIV-positive status, if the prosecutor has access to that information, or attempt to bring separate charges under an HIV-specific nondisclosure statute or the general criminal laws.
Granted by many judges but not yet affirmed in appellate case law or confirmed in statute.
Yes. Read our fact sheet Marriage for Same-Sex Couples in Washington State. (En español).
Depends on the law
Wash. Rev. Code § 9A.36.080 (2010)
Wash. Rev. Code § 49.60.215 (2010)
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