After Democratic lawmakers forced amendments on a bill to make soliciting a child for sex a felony, fellow Democratic Sen. Susan Talamantes Eggman blasted those responsible for changing the bill while debating the measure on the Senate floor May 23.
At issue is Senate Bill 1414, authored by Republican Sen. Shannon Grove, which as originally written would make soliciting a child for sex a felony. Amendments forced by the Senate’s Public Safety Committee watered down the proposal to exclude 16- and 17-year-olds, made the crime a “wobbler”—where prosecutors can charge offenders with a misdemeanor or a felony depending on the circumstances—and required a 10-year age gap between the offender and the victim to qualify for prosecution.
“I'd like to say as a progressive, proud member of this body for the last 12 years, I’m done,” Ms. Eggman said. “I’m done with us protecting people who would buy and abuse our children.”
She said that while she agrees with criminal justice reform efforts meant to limit the number of black and brown Californians incarcerated for some crimes, she supports stricter regulations for child sex crimes.
“I don’t want people buying little girls anymore, and I’m tired of saying it’s OK and that we have to protect the men who do it,” Ms. Eggman said. “Again, I am not arguing that we open the gates to flood our prisons with people, but I am arguing that we have a moral responsibility to say, enough, enough,”
Citing a perceived hit to the party’s reputation because of a lenient approach to child sex trafficking and prostitution crimes, she urged her colleagues to rethink their positions.
“They’re poor kids, they’re kids of color, but they shouldn’t have to live a life determined by what happens to them by others at a very young age and by having the Democratic Party of California say, it’s OK. It’s not OK,” Ms. Eggman said. “We have given away enough on this area and we’ve got to move back into the center or we all look like fools and laughing stocks, and what do we stand for?”
The bill’s author thanked her Senate colleague for standing up to those who forced amendments to her proposal.
“What a mic-drop speech,” Ms. Grove told The Epoch Times.
With more than a decade as a legislator, she said the surprise amendments in the safety committee were the first she has encountered.
“I’ve been in the Senate for a while and in the Assembly since 2010, and it’s the first time I’ve ever encountered it,” Ms. Grove said. “I think the goal of this was to have me pull the bill, but I’m not going to do it, I’m going to continue to fight for the children in this state.”
She thanked the media for spreading the word about the changes and said that public awareness can help encourage other lawmakers to make the right choices.
“If the media didn’t engage, the people outside of this building would have no idea what’s happening in the state,” Ms. Grove said.
Looking forward, she said her goal is to restore the bill to its original language as it makes its way through the Assembly.
“I’m so excited not only for its passage but because everybody realizes that we need to fix it, and hopefully we can do better in the Assembly,” Ms. Grove said.
One lawmaker expressed disappointment with the amendments and called on colleagues to protect all children instead of excluding certain ages—noting that state law identifies all youth under the age of 18 as minors.
“Human trafficking is the greatest evil in our society. It’s even worse when it comes to our children,” Republican Sen. Janet Nguyen said on the Senate floor May 23. “I too rise in support of SB 1414 ... actually the original one that protects all children.”
Support for the measure on the Senate floor came from several members on both sides of the aisle.
“We won’t stand for our minors getting hurt, and so, this is an important bill that I feel we could all get behind.” said Sen. Susan Rubio, a Democrat. “These perpetrators are getting away with abusing our most vulnerable populations.”
Another Democratic senator expressed his broad support for the original language while acknowledging that criminal justice reform was a priority.
“I’m not a big proponent of throwing away the key, but anybody that preys on children needs to be locked up,” Sen. Steven Bradford said. “They’re an animal, and they don’t deserve to walk the streets.”
Law enforcement experts from across the state were listed as supporters of the measure and called for the crime to be classified as a felony.
“The reality is that these children, who are unable to consent to their own exploitation, are victims of sex trafficking,” the Tulare County District Attorney’s Office said in legislative analyses. “SB 1414 will give a voice to the children who have suffered from this horrific abuse.”
Critics argued that the measure was unfair to some offenders who potentially were not aware that their victims were minors.
“This bill ... punishes some defendants more harshly—felony punishment and sex offender registration—even when those persons do not have the intent to have sex with a minor,” the California Public Defenders Association said in legislative analyses. “This change will unfortunately lump some defendants into the category of ‘sex offender’ with lifelong consequences for them and their families even though the intent is completely lacking.”
In committee analyses, 99 groups were listed in support—including dozens of law enforcement organizations—while 12 groups opposed—including social justice advocates.
The amended bill ultimately passed the Senate floor on a vote of 36–0 and will next be heard by respective committees in the Assembly in the coming weeks.
