Democrats Reject SB1414 Which Makes Buying Sex with Children a Felony

Democrats Reject SB1414 Which Makes Buying Sex with Children a Felony

What is wrong with California Senate Democrats?

I am continually appalled at how little California Senate Democrats care about children.  Last year, they blocked SB 14, which would make selling children for sex a felony.

Every time I try to believe they actually have good reasons for allowing mutilation of children, or forcing teachers to hide information from parents, or other nonsense, they go and do something like this.

The latest law, bipartisan SB 1414, drafted by Republican Senator Shannon Grove protects children by making it a felony to buy them for sex.  After all, California ranks first in the country for reported human trafficking cases!

Democrats REJECTED that bill (calling it “overbroad” with “unintended consequences”), then hijacked it and made amendments to exclude 16 and 17 year olds.  So, buying 16 and 17 year olds for sex will remain ONLY a misdemeanor.   Like wearing false whiskers to evade or escape recognition for commission of crime.

UNBELIEVABLE.

SB 1414

According to Sen. Grove:

“SB 1414 states that any individual who solicits, agrees to engage in, or engages in any act of commercial sex with a minor will face felony charges. If passed, this law will hold these offenders accountable under strict liability (meaning buyers can’t just claim they thought the child was of age) and they will face imprisonment in the state prison, along with fines up to $25,000 and mandatory registration as a sex offender. We must continue to shed light on the darkness of human trafficking, bring justice and protection to those who are most vulnerable. We are sending a clear message with SB 1414– Not one more child should have to suffer at the hands of those who seek to exploit and harm them.”

Note, this law is a follow up to last year’s SB14, which made trafficking (the selling of children) for sex a felony.  Which the Democrats also blocked!

Today, the Senate Public Safety Committee refused to pass my bill to send child sex buyers to prison.

Instead of making the buying of kids a felony with prison time, the committee forced me to take amendments I didn’t agree with and watered down my bill to allow a fine or…

— Senator Shannon Grove (@ShannonGroveCA) April 16, 2024

Instead of being a felony, Democrats made it less punisable – a “wobbler”

“Instead of voting on Senator Grove’s bill as proposed, members of the committee instead forced hostile amendments and voted the bill out of committee without Senator Grove’s consent. Now, instead of making the purchase of all children a felony, the committee has made the solicitation or purchase of children for sex punishable by a wobbler, which can still be charged as a misdemeanor, punishable by as little as 2 days in jail or up to a $10,000 fine.

A felony can only be charged if the child solicited or purchased was 15 years old or younger, and unfortunately, the buyer would still be ineligible for prison.

If a buyer has a previous conviction of purchasing a child under 16 years old and is convicted on a second offense of buying child under 16 years old and the victim and buyer are more than 10 years apart in age, only then would the buyer have to register as a tier one sex offender (10-years).

This bill would instead make all solicitation of a minor a state prison felony offense with a penalty of two, three or four years in state prison, and/or a fine not exceeding $25,000, regardless of whether the defendant knew or should have known the person was a minor.

In doing so, this bill lowers the bar as to what must be proven to obtain a criminal conviction while at the same time increasing the punishment under the statute to a state prison felony.”

Under the Amended Bill, Solicitation of 16 and 17 Year Olds Remains Misdemeanor Only

Democrats hijacked and amended it to only protect 15 year olds and under.

What about These Victims?

Survivors of human trafficking like Sandy Esparza was only 14 when her trafficker raped and sold her for sex.

“The laws didn’t protect me then and they aren’t protecting children now,” Esparza notes. “Currently, sex buyers rape children and walk away with a slap on the wrist in California.”

Esparza works at Zoe, a human trafficking prevention program in Southern California.  She is now the mother of 2 teenagers.  She traveled to the CA State Capitol to testify for SB 1414 as originally proposed.

Pray for California.

Democrats Reject SB1414 Which Makes Buying Sex with Children a Felony