By a 20-1 margin, the Nevada Senate passed legislation Thursday that expands criminal and civil liability to include crimes against transgender individuals. That is far different from two years ago, when a very similar measure by Sen. David Parks, D-Las Vegas, died in the Senate. Prime sponsor Sen. Pat Spearman, D-North Las Vegas, said the bill is about equal protection. She said she knows of cases in which people who are transgender have been discriminated against or even physically assaulted because they are different. “We have to stop erecting walls around ourselves to keep people out who are not like …