Fierce backlash forces California Dems to pull bill that would have destroyed self-defense rights

Democrats in California shut down an effort to erode self-defense rights after massive backlash from their constituents and Second Amendment advocates.

Assemblyman Rick Chavez Zbur, a Democrat, said that misinformation had made him pull the bill that would have limited self-defense in some cases that he said fell into a legal loophole.

'As a father and as the victim of a home invasion myself, I understand how essential the right to self-defense is.'

“Protecting public safety has always been my top priority. AB 1333 sought to close a dangerous legal loophole that could allow armed aggressors to initiate confrontations in public, kill their victims, and then exploit self-defense laws to escape accountability," he wrote about the proposal.

Zbur had previously addressed anger about the bill by saying that he was trying to prevent cases like that of Kyle Rittenhouse, who successfully claimed self-defense and has been lauded by many on the right. In 2021, Trump met with Rittenhouse and condemned the “prosecutorial misconduct” that led to him facing charges for shooting three men in self-defense.

"The bill does not change the long-standing Castle Doctrine and was never intended to affect anyone’s ability to protect themselves, their family, or their home," he added. "As a father and as the victim of a home invasion myself, I understand how essential the right to self-defense is."

Democrats were going to change the bill to clarify its intent but instead pulled it altogether.

"AB 1333 was never intended to limit a crime victim’s right to defend yourself, your family, or home," Zbur had written previously on social media. "The goal is to prevent wannabe vigilantes like Kyle Rittenhouse from provoking violence & claiming self defense after the fact."

Democrats in the California legislature have made it their focus to make the state a leader in opposing the agenda of President Donald Trump.

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