The Supreme Court let Texas’ near-total prohibition of abortions stand last fall, allowing private citizens to enforce the ban by suing doctors and others who help a woman get an abortion after about six weeks.
Governor Gavin Newsom said at the time that he might try the same move in California when it comes to guns. On Friday, he followed through by unveiling four bills. One tightens restrictions on ghost guns, another one bans the marketing of certain weapons to children. The big one is modeled after Texas’ abortion law — it lets private citizens sue anyone who makes, distributes, transports, imports into California, or sells illegal assault weapons, guns that take .50 caliber ammunition, ghost guns, or ghost gun kits.
Also, a big legal victory was achieved for parents whose kids died from the 2012 shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary in Connecticut. They reached a $73 million settlement with Remington, the maker of the AR-15-style rifle used in the attack.