California Legislature passes bill to reduce penalties for sex offenders who prey upon children

UPDATE, 9/12/20: California Governor Gavin Newsom has signed SB 145 into state law.

9/3/20: As Live Action’s Aiding Abusers investigation showed, the abortion industry helps sex abusers cover up their crimes. Abortion organizations, and Planned Parenthood in particular, have been caught time and time again refusing to report instances of child rape and abuse, instead committing abortions and sending victims back to their abusers. Under California law, minors of any age can consent to abortion. Now, the California Legislature has approved a bill that would lessen penalties for sex offenders who prey upon children like these.

California Senate Bill 145 has passed both houses of the state legislature and is on its way to Governor Gavin Newsom’s desk for his signature. The bill has caused outrage across partisan lines. Under SB 145, a judge would have discretion as to whether or not the offending adult would be placed on the sex offender registry, if the adult is within 10 years of age of the child. It gives sex abusers even more potential to escape accountability for preying on young children.

READ: Planned Parenthood sponsors California bill to hide minors’ abortions from parents

The bill was introduced by Scott Weiner, a state senator from San Francisco, who claimed that existing state laws are discriminatory against LGBT youth. “California’s sex offender registry continues to draw that distinction — an antiquated, outdated, leftover distinction — that somehow oral sex is worse than vaginal sex,” he said, as reported by Fox11 Los Angeles. However, numerous politicians on both sides of the aisle argued fiercely against that claim.

Lorenza Gonzalez, a Democrat assemblywoman representing southern San Diego, argued that it doesn’t matter if the sex in question is heterosexual or homosexual when it is between an adult and a child.

“Any sex is sex. I don’t care who it is between or what sex act it is,” she said. “That being said, I cannot in my mind as a mother understand how sex between a 24-year-old and a 14-year-old could ever be consensual, how it could ever not be a registerable offense,” Gonzalez said, her voice cracking at times with emotion. “We should never give up on this idea that children are not, should be in any way subject to a predator. And that is what it is…. Give me a situation where a 24-year-old had sex with a 14-year-old, any kind of sex, and it wasn’t predatory. Any example and I have yet to see it.”

CA Legislators Pass SB 145, Lowering Penalties for Sex with Minors

Steven Choi, a Republican Member of the assembly, likewise slammed the bill. “In the age of historic sex trafficking and child trafficking here in California, I think this bill is entirely inappropriate,” Choi said before the assembly. “I don’t understand why a 24-year-old volunteer coach should not have to register as a sex offender for being with a 15-year-old student. Statutory rape should be a registerable offense either way. … This is unbelievable. What kind of a bill is this? This is intolerable.”

Senator Shannon Grove, also a Republican, spoke out against the bill, urging Californians to contact Gov. Newsom’s office and tell him to veto SB 145.

Senator Shannon Grove

@ShannonGroveCA

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⚠️LEGISLATIVE ALERT⚠️ #SB145 is on its way to the governor's desk. If signed into law, a 24-year-old could have sexual relations with a 15-year-old child without being required to register as a sex offender. 📣Tell @GavinNewsom to VETO SB 145 to help #SaveOurChildren. #CALeg

8:43 PM · Sep 1, 2020

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Children are already at risk of seeing their abusers escape consequences as it is, and the abortion industry in particular has shown that predators are not held to account nearly enough. SB 145 will simply make it easier for predatory adults to get away with seducing children.

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