California’s Democratic leadership has once again executed a dramatic policy reversal following intense public backlash, this time on legislation concerning sex trafficking of minors, San Francisco Chronicle reports.

Assembly Democrats initially opposed strengthening penalties for adults who purchase 16- and 17-year-olds for sex, stripping Assembly Member Maggy Krell’s bill (AB379) of its key provisions. The original bill aimed to match punishments with those for offenders who purchase children 15 and younger.

Democrats Reverse Course After Public Criticism

After facing severe criticism, Democratic leaders backtracked. They now plan to amend AB379 to impose felony penalties for adult offenders soliciting sex from 16- and 17-year-olds, provided they’re at least three years older than the minor. The revised bill also creates a grant program to help district attorneys streamline human trafficking prosecutions.

“This bill recognizes what should long have been obvious: that buying minors for sex is an egregious and horrific crime, regardless of whether the kids are 15 or 17,” wrote Emily Hoeven in her analysis of the situation in the San Francisco Chronicle.

Pattern of Policy Reversals Continues

This reversal follows similar patterns in recent years. In 2023, Democrats initially killed a bill classifying human trafficking of minors as a “serious” felony before public pressure forced them to revive it. In 2024, they opposed Proposition 36, which reformed Proposition 47’s lighter penalties for certain crimes, only to see voters approve it with over 68% support.

As the Senate prepares to consider the amended bill, questions remain about whether California Democrats have learned from these repeated political miscalculations.

Read more at San Francisco Chronicle