photo: Ruben diaz alonso/ BY-NC-SA

State Assemblyman Pedro Nava, Democrat from Santa Barbara is sponsoring legislation that would make it a crime to not report a violent attack if you witness it. This proposal was inspired by the gang rape that took place in Richmond, CA in October where almost twenty people stood around and watched a girl get raped, beaten, and robbed without calling the cops. Currently the law requires people to report a violent crime against a 14-year-old child. The law was unenforceable in the Richmond case because the victim was a 15-year-old.

According to Nava, the new law would require people to report any violent crime regardless of age. The penalties would be the same as the current law-- six months in jail and a fine of $1,500. Nava's proposal is expected to be looked at by the assembly committee as early as January. Nava was quoted by The San Francisco Chronicle as saying, "I cannot imagine any reasonable opposition to it - when you think about it, spectators at a dog fight face heavier penalties than witnesses (to a rape) do under the current law."

I still find it hard to believe though a child is still under their parents' supervision until the age of 18, our current law only protects kids under 14.

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