SACRAMENTO, CA (KMJ) After the Assembly Public Safety Committee unceremoniously ripped Assembly Bill 379 from it’s author last week – a deal is reportedly in place that will likely put it on the Governor’s desk.
Politico reports Assembly Speaker Robert Rivas’ office told them Tuesday that Rivas had reached a deal to amend the legislation so it would allow prosecutors to charge felonies for soliciting older teens. The agreement resulted from negotiations with Public Safety Committee Chair Nick Schultz (D-Burbank) and Assemblymember Maggy Krell (D-Sacramento), a first-term Democratic lawmaker who introduced the original legislation.
The bill is meant to make it a felony against those who solicit 16 and 17-year-olds for sex. Krell is a former Sacramento County prosecutor who is passionate about the subject.
Assemblyman David Tangipa (R-Clovis) called Krell “a hero” who helped save a family member who had been trafficked by a former classmate of his.
Even Gov. Newsom voiced his displeasure with his own party after in-fighting erupted when the Public Safety Committee gutted the original bill and Republicans took charge of the debate demanding the original bill be heard on the floor.
After the media go hold of the story, the public criticism of democrat lawmakers across the state was swift and angry.
Listen to the report by KMJ’s Liz Kern.
