California Democratic Sen. Susan Talamantes Eggman urged her progressive colleagues to pass a Republican-sponsored bill that would make sexual solicitation of a child a felony.
“I’ve served in this Congress for the last 12 years as a proud progressive member, but that’s enough,” Eggman said on the Senate floor last week before voting for the bill. “I’m done protecting people who buy children and abuse them. That’s enough. I don’t want to send more black and brown men to prison. I don’t want more people in prison, but I don’t want to buy girls.”
“I don’t want people buying little girls anymore, and I’m tired of being told it’s OK and that we have to protect the men who do it.”
Senate Bill 1414The bill, introduced by Republican state Sen. Shannon Grove along with Democratic Sens. Ana Caballero and Susan Rubio, would classify soliciting or purchasing sex from a child under the age of 15 as a misdemeanor or felony punishable by prison time.
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California State Senator Susan Talamantes Eggman and other lawmakers honor influential California women during Women’s History Month on March 20, 2023 in Sacramento, California. (Jason Almond/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)
For those aged 16 or 17, it is considered a misdemeanor. Felony charges carry prison time, but repeat offenders who have a significant age difference with their victims must register as first-degree sex offenders for their second offense.
“As a mental health professional and social worker, I can say that I’ve spent my entire career working with people who are hurting,” Eggman added, “and while I wouldn’t say they are beyond repair, they are deeply wounded by the abuse they’ve suffered at the hands of those they expect to love and protect.”
Grove’s bill would increase penalties for child trafficking, raising the crime from a misdemeanor to a felony with a maximum sentence of four years in prison and a $25,000 fine. Unlike current law, the penalties would apply regardless of whether the adult knew the child’s age.
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Last month, Democrats on the Public Safety Committee “chopped” parts of Grove’s bill, adding several amendments to ensure the proposed fees only apply to children under the age of 15. The bill passed the state Senate last week on a 36-0 vote, without Grove’s original text. Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom has also voiced his support for the bill, and it now heads to the state Assembly, where Grove hopes to reinstate some of the bill’s original text.
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Grove also proposed amendments that would classify soliciting or purchasing sex acts from a child of any age as a felony and remove the 10-year age gap requirement for sex offender registration.
Sen. Shannon Grove introduced SB 1414 earlier this year. (Kelly Sullivan)
“In California, the crime of purchasing a child of any age for sex purposes should be a felony punishable by prison. I am extremely disappointed that the Senate President Pro Tempore and Senate leadership once again missed an opportunity to resurrect this bill and stand up for all of California’s children,” Grove said in a statement.
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“This outcome is a failure by legislative leaders who bowed to political pressure and did not prioritize the safety of children. We must reinstate this bill in the Legislature to protect all California children from the horrific crime of sex trafficking.”
