California Democrats have blocked a proposal that would make the sex trafficking of 16 and 17-year-olds a felony.
AB 379 will continue to move past the Assembly Public Safety Committee without the proposal included. The development comes as several lawmakers struck a “deal” last year to allow the felony charge to apply only to those who purchase minors under the age of 16, KCRA reported. Those who purchase 16 and 17-year-olds could face a felony charge as determined by local prosecutors.
Democratic Assemblymember Maggy Krell, whose background involves working on trafficking cases for the state, said the proposal’s removal is a “disgrace.”
“I’ve been doing this for 20 years, and I’m not going to quit now. And I am going to bring this part of this bill back every year until I get the books to protect children. That’s what I’m going to do,” Krell told KCRA. “I was told that it was pulled and the only way I could get it back on the agenda is if parts of the bill would be blocked.”
California lawmakers in the Assembly Public Safety Committee also voted against a measure making child trafficking a “serious felony” last year.
All six Democrats on the committee took part in the “no” vote, while the two Republicans on the committee voted “yes.”
California GOP Chairwoman Jessica Millan Patterson said at the time, “You know you’re on the wrong side of an issue when you deliver a win for human traffickers.” She added that “Democrats on the Public Safety Committee proved they have no intention of protecting the lives of Californians, let alone protecting innocent children from the horrors of human trafficking.”
