SAN DIEGO (KNX) — A new bill in California would allow citizens to sue gun makers in the same way Texans can go after abortion providers.
Gov. Gavin Newsom announced Friday he was backing legislation that would permit private citizens to legally enforce the state’s ban on assault weapons — a direct model on the Texas law that allows citizens to enforce its ban on abortions after a fetal heartbeat is detected.
"If Texas can use a law to ban a woman's right to choose and to put her health at risk, we will use that same law to save lives and improve the health and safety of the people in the state of California," Newsom said at a press conference on Friday.
The bill would let people seek a court order to stop the distribution of prohibited firearms and recover up to $10,000 in damages for each violative weapon, plus attorney’s fees.
"Our message to the United States Supreme Court is as follows: What's good for the goose is good for the gander," said state Sen. Bob Hertzberg (D.-San Fernando Valley), the bill’s author. "I look forward to rushing a new bill to the governor's desk to take advantage of that United States Supreme Court guidance."
The bill has not yet been filed with the state legislature. But Hertzberg’s office said, if passed, the bill would apply to companies that manufacture, distribute, transport, import into the state, or sell assault weapons, .50 BMG rifles, ghost guns, or ghost gun kits.
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