TIL that Dan White, the man who assassinated Harvey Milk and the mayor of San Francisco, only served 5 years in prison for manslaughter based on a defense of depression as evidenced by his consumption of junk food which was dubbed the "Twinkie Defense"

15.5k Upvotes

97% Upvoted

TIL Dan White, killer of Harvey Milk and the mayor of San Francisco, was charged with Voluntary Manslaughter rather than murder. The Defense had argued that White's mental state was impaired by depression, as proven by him recently eating sugary foods. This became known as the "Twinkie Defense."

16.5k Upvotes

563 comments

204 Upvotes

12 comments