Blocked Child Trafficking Bill Revived by California Governor To Increase Penalties for Crime

Governor Newsom revived the child trafficking bill that was blocked by Democrats to increase penalties for the crime in California. In doing so, Newsom sided with a Republican state senator over some members of his party.

The child trafficking bill was introduced by Republican State Senator Shannon Grove who intends to make the crime a serious felony in California. In the state, under the “three strikes law”, any individual convicted of at least three serious felonies will be punished for 25 years to life imprisonment.

An article in USNews.com states that the child trafficking bill passed the Senate controlled by the Democrats earlier this year. As a result, Grove expected that there will hardly be any opposition to the child trafficking bill in the Assembly. However, on July 11, the Democrats on the Assembly Public Safety Committee refused to advance the child trafficking bill which puts it at risk of not passing this year.

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Child Trafficking Bill Revived

According to an article in CBS News, on July 12, Governor Gavin Newsom intervened and revived the child trafficking bill to increase the penalties for the crime in the state. Further reports say Newsom mentioned how he signed a state budget in 2022 that included $25 million for children who became victims of sex trafficking.

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