SACRAMENTO — California Senate Bill 1204, which would have potentially cast a wider net for more criminal pandering defendants, failed to gain enough votes to move forward today.
The amendment to the pandering statute would have made it easier to charge individuals who act as third parties.
Introduced by state Sen. Patricia Bates, SB 1204 would have make it a felony to provide any help or outreach to sex workers, including harm-reduction services like distributing condoms or providing bad-date lists.
The bill needed four aye votes, but only garnered three today in the state Senate Committee on Public Safety.
Both the Free Speech Coalition and the ESPLER Project (Erotic Service Providers Legal, Education and Research Project) condemned SB 1204. Numerous other organizations also objected to the bill.
Maxine Doogan of ESPLER Project told XBIZ tonight: "Finally our community that is the target of these bad laws is standing up to legislators who choose to craft legislation on our behalf without us. [It is an] approach lawmakers should never repeat."
