California Governor Gavin Newsom revealed a new bill allowing private citizens to enforce gun control by suing gun makers. The governor compared the bill to Texas’ latest abortion law, which allows citizens to hold abortion providers accountable, rather than the government.
At a press conference, Newsom taunted the Supreme Court, suggesting:
. . .they opened up the door. They set the tone, tenor, the rules. And either we can be on the defense complaining about it or we can play by those rules. We are going to play by those rules.
Newsom believes there is “no principled way” the court cannot uphold the bill.
The new legislation targets the selling, manufacturing, distribution, transportation, and importation of “assault weapons,” according to a statement by lead Democrat Senator Robert Hertzberg. California citizens who sue are subject to receive a minimum of $10,000 in damages per firearm.
Although Newsom claims the bill is modeled after Texas’ latest abortion bill, pro-life advocates disagree with his assessment.
Kimberlyn Schwartz of the Texas Right to Life told Fox News,
Despite Gov. Gavin Newsom’s claim, the California bill is significantly different than the legal framework and enforcement mechanism of the life-saving Texas Heartbeat Act. This legislation adds a private cause of action for manufacturing or selling ‘assault rifles,’ or breaking other gun control laws, all of which are already criminal offenses in California.
California’s Assembly Republican leader, James Gallagher, told Fox News, “The real problem is California has adopted policies that let criminals continue to commit crimes and get let right out. Californians are tired of it, and he would love to distract them.” He continued,
Crime has gotten worse under this governor, and that’s a fact. The problem is criminals – there’s no accountability for crime in California, and that’s because of policies enacted by Gavin Newsom and the supermajority of Democrats.