Gavin Newsom is working on a bill allowing private citizens to sue makers and sellers of assault weapons.
The bill is in response to a Supreme Court decision that allowed a Texas abortion law to stand.
The Texas law invites private citizens to enforce the ban by suing abortion providers.
Get a daily selection of our top stories based on your reading preferences. Loading Something is loading. Email address By clicking ‘Sign up’, you agree to receive marketing emails from Insider as well as other partner offers and accept our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy
California Gov. Gavin Newsom said Saturday he is working on a bill that would help private citizens sue manufacturers, distributors, and sellers of assault weapons or ghost gun kits.
Newsom said he was responding to a Supreme Court decision made Friday that allowed a controversial abortion law in Texas to stand. The law bans all abortions after six weeks of pregnancy and invites ordinary citizens, rather than state officials, to enforce it by suing abortion providers or anyone who helps someone get an abortion.
The court's decision was technical, Insider's Oma Seddiq reported and did not rule on the constitutionality of the law, which is still being challenged in court.
But Newsom blasted the court for not blocking the law in statements released on Twitter Saturday.
"SCOTUS is letting private citizens in Texas sue to stop abortion?! If that's the precedent then we'll let Californians sue those who put ghost guns and assault weapons on our streets," Newsom wrote. "If TX can ban abortion and endanger lives, CA can ban deadly weapons of war and save lives."
Newsom said his staff is working with state legislators on a bill that would allow private citizens to take legal action against "anyone who manufactures, distributes, or sells an assault weapon of ghost gun kit or parts in the State of California."
Citizens who sue and win would be rewarded at least $10,000 per violation plus the cost of their legal fees, as is also the case in the Texas abortion law.
"If the most efficient way to keep these devastating weapons off our streets is to add the threat of private lawsuits, we should do just that," Newsom said.
Newsom did not give additional details about what the bill will include or how it would define assault weapons.
The governor's office did not immediately respond to Insider's request for comment on details and a proposed timeline of the bill.
TheKosherKomrade on December 12nd, 2021 at 06:03 UTC »
I expect they'll overturn this decision after they ban abortion outright.
TrillyElliot on December 12nd, 2021 at 05:35 UTC »
I don’t love Newsom, he doesn’t govern my state, but this is exactly the kind of line the ‘left’ in this country needs to take with Rebublican party interests.
Not to be gauche, but it’s about time a Democrat showed some fucking balls.
Modern_Bear on December 12nd, 2021 at 05:18 UTC »
This was the inevitable result of the Texas abortion law. It is a really bad legal precedent to set, which will throw the legal system into chaos if it is allowed to stand, and I posted this prediction on this sub months ago.
The SCOTUS decision isn't the final word because they are allowing it to stand for now while challenges are making their way through the courts, but they should have blocked it for now because it's bad law that is already causing chaos in Texas. Now other states are starting to consider using the same tactic on other issues, creating more chaos, which they can do because the SCOTUS already set a precedent that they are fine with this legal shenanigan, at least for now. States all across the country are going to basically act like trolls with the legal system, probably with some really crazy ideas in some cases, because the SCOTUS is making decisions for political reasons instead of sound legal ones.