On Friday, California Governor Gavin Newsom signed a gun control bill modeled after Texas' heartbeat abortion legislation into law.
Newsom, a Democrat, signed the legislation in response to Texas' heartbeat bill that was signed into law last year that bans abortions after a fetal heartbeat is detected. The bill further allows private citizens to sue anyone conducting or assisting a woman in receiving an abortion for $10,000 in damages.
The new California gun control law follows a similar structure, allowing private citizens to sue any distributor, manufacturer, seller and importer of illegal "assault weapons and ghost guns" for $10,000 in damages per weapon.
"Our message to the criminals spreading illegal weapons in California is simple: you have no safe harbor here in the Golden State," Newsom said in a statement. "While the Supreme Court rolls back reasonable gun safety measures, California continues adding new ways to protect the lives of our kids. California will use every tool at its disposal to save lives, especially in the face of an increasingly extreme Supreme Court," he added.
According to Fox News, Newsom signed the bill into law at Santa Monica College, the same place where a gunman shot and killed five people with an AR-15 in 2013. The weapon was believed to have been built with legally purchased parts.
Sam Paredes, executive director of Gun Owners of California, warned that the legislation will face lawsuits, the Los Angeles Times reports.
"It is obvious that this is a retaliation against lawful gun owners and the court because of the Texas decision. There's a full expectation that the firearms industry will have a very strong reaction towards the signing of this bill," Paredes said. "They are really, really trying to be nothing but vindictive against lawful people in the firearms industry. All of our attorneys are in the process of evaluating what we are going to do on this thing."
On Thursday, Newsom signed several other gun control bills into law. The new laws include restrictions on those convicted of child or elder abuse from having access to firearms for 10 years and a decrease in the number of guns a person is permitted to manufacture without a license. Newsom also ordered the state's Justice Department to inspect gun dealers at least every three years starting in 2024.
Related:
Texas Governor Greg Abbott Signs Historic Heartbeat Bill into Law
'Victory for Life': Appeals Court Rebuffs Biden DOJ, Sides with Texas Heartbeat Law
Photo courtesy: ©Getty Images/Justin Sullivan/Staff
Milton Quintanilla is a freelance writer and content creator. He is a contributing writer for CrosswalkHeadlines and the host of the For Your Soul Podcast, a podcast devoted to sound doctrine and biblical truth. He holds a Masters of Divinity from Alliance Theological Seminary.
