The “Turing Law,” which pardons late British gay men who were convicted of past anti-sodomy statutes, and allows living men to request exonerations for past convictions, received royal assent–the last stage before the bill becomes law in the on Tuesday. While Alan Turing, the WWII codebreaker and computing pioneer for whom the law was named, was given a posthumous royal pardon in 2013, this legislation would apply broadly to anyone convicted of LGBT-related crimes that are no longer on the books.
According to CNN, while a number of prominent politicians like Justice Minister Sam Gyimah expressed pride that the bill had become a reality, some men who could seek relief under the law will not do so – stating that they doing so would be an admission of guilt. “In my view, if you’re born only able to love and be in love with another a man – which means you’re gay – then it can’t be a crime. How can that be a crime? It’s not fair,” says George Montague, a Brighton resident who was convicted in 1974 of gross indecency.