Moscone–Milk assassinations
1978 murders in San Francisco, California, US / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Dear Wikiwand AI, let's keep it short by simply answering these key questions:
Can you list the top facts and stats about Moscone–Milk assassinations?
Summarize this article for a 10 year old
On November 27, 1978, George Moscone, the mayor of San Francisco, and Harvey Milk, a member of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors, were shot and killed inside City Hall by former Supervisor Dan White. On the morning of that day, Moscone intended to announce that the Supervisor position from which White had previously resigned would be given to someone else. White, angered, entered City Hall before the scheduled announcement and first shot Moscone in the Mayor's office, then Milk in White's former office space, before escaping the building. Board of Supervisors President Dianne Feinstein first announced Moscone and Milk's deaths to the media, and because of Moscone's death, succeeded him as acting mayor.
Moscone–Milk assassinations | |
---|---|
Part of violence against LGBT people in the United States | |
Location | City Hall, San Francisco, California, U.S. |
Coordinates | 37°46′45″N 122°25′10″W |
Date | November 27, 1978; 45 years ago (1978-11-27) 10:45 a.m. – 10:55 a.m. (PST) |
Target | George Moscone, Harvey Milk |
Attack type | Assassination, spree shooting |
Weapons | .38-caliber Smith & Wesson Model 36 Chief's Special[1] |
Victims | George Moscone and Harvey Milk (both killed) |
Perpetrator | Dan White |
Verdict | Guilty on the lesser offenses of voluntary manslaughter |
Convictions | Voluntary manslaughter (2 counts) |
Charges | First-degree murder with special circumstances (2 counts) |
Sentence | 7 years and 8 months in prison (paroled after 5 years) |
This article or section appears to contradict itself. (January 2024) |
White was charged with first-degree murder with circumstances that made him eligible for the death penalty. However, on May 21, 1979, White was convicted of the lesser crime of voluntary manslaughter and was sentenced to seven years' imprisonment, which resulted in the White Night riots and the abolition of the diminished capacity criminal defense in California. The trial also led to creation of the term "Twinkie defense", as White's defense argued that he had diminished capacity due to depression, which they claimed was caused by the effects of sugar-laden junk food.[2][3] White committed suicide in 1985, a year and a half after his release from prison.
Feinstein was elected by the Board of Supervisors to become the first female mayor of San Francisco on December 4, 1978, a title she would hold for the next ten years. She eventually became a United States Senator for California until her death in 2023.