A California lawmaker has referred to as pro-Palestinian protests held on the Golden Gate Bridge earlier this week “unacceptable” and stated protesters who trapped drivers and paramedics for hours have to be held accountable “to the total extent of the regulation.” “
Republican Assemblywoman Kate Sanchez, who represents California's 71st District, stated the protests will not be solely disrupting folks's day by day lives, however might severely threaten the protection of town.
“These protests not solely stop somebody from attending to work on time, however probably stop first responders from attending to the scene of an emergency or getting somebody who wants assist instantly,” Sanchez stated.
“He's holding them again, not only for a couple of minutes, which could possibly be the distinction between life and dying, he's holding them again for hours and hours,” she continued.
Whereas Sanchez stated she believed in the appropriate to protest and freedom of speech, the lawmaker argued that the extent to which these protesters went was “unacceptable.”
“There must be extra productive and considerate methods as a result of we don't wish to harm anybody who wants medical and mandatory medical care to get it,” Sanchez stated.
Sanchez launched AB 2742 this yr, which will increase penalties for individuals who block the paths of emergency automobiles which are flashing their sirens and inside 1,000 toes of them.
“If it's $100, double it to $200, as much as $1,000. Nothing groundbreaking. It could simply give folks extra instruments of their toolbox to carry protesters accountable. And I feel it's a really affordable requirement,” she stated of the invoice.
“Once you're speaking about probably stopping folks from attending to pressing medical wants, proper? It's lower than a rushing ticket nowadays. So I really feel like simply asking for a doubling of the sentence or the fines mandatory to indicate them that we're extra severe about what you're doing and please do it elsewhere, I don't assume it's asking an excessive amount of,” Sanchez continued.
