The Baja California Sur state congress unanimously approved reforms to the state Penal Code on April 22, 2026, requiring judges to apply a gender perspective when evaluating cases of women who use self-defense against their aggressors. The measure, known informally as “Ley Alina,” amends Articles 31 and 87 of the BCS Penal Code.
The reforms target a longstanding gap in the state’s criminal justice system. Under existing law, women who defended themselves against domestic abusers could face prosecution without any consideration of the sustained violence they endured before acting. The new provisions require prosecutors and judges to weigh a history of gender-based violence when determining whether legitimate self-defense applies.
Morena Lawmaker Champions the Reform
Morena party state legislator Teresita de Jesús Valentín Vázquez, who presented the initiative, told colleagues during the session in La Paz that the reform “recognizes a reality that was ignored for a long time.” She said there are women who endure constant violence, “not an isolated moment of aggression, but an entire life marked by fear, and when they finally defend themselves, the system can punish them again.”
Valentín Vázquez has been an active proponent of penal code changes during the current XVII Legislature. In February 2025, she introduced a separate initiative to stiffen penalties for statutory rape, sexual abuse of minors, and related crimes under BCS law.
Part of a Broader Legislative Push
The reform fits a pattern during the current legislative session. According to a March 2026 review by El Sudcaliforniano, penal code amendments related to workplace harassment, gender violence, sexual abuse, and extortion have dominated the agenda of the 21-member unicameral congress. Morena and the Labor Party (PT) hold a combined 16 of the 21 seats, giving the ruling coalition a wide majority.
The “Ley Alina” name references a specific case, though the full details of its origin were not elaborated in the legislative session coverage. Such naming conventions are common in Mexican law when reforms are inspired by individual victims whose cases exposed legal shortcomings.
How the reform plays out will depend on state prosecutors at the Fiscalía General del Estado (FGE) and local courts. Defense attorneys in self-defense cases will now be able to invoke the gender perspective provision directly when arguing on behalf of women defendants.
First reported by Noticias La Paz and El Sudcaliforniano.