27 Colorado Democrats voted to protect sexual predators who are caught indecently exposing themselves to minors.
Republicans in the state House introduced legislation to make it a class 6 felony for anyone to indecently expose themselves to children.
In Colorado, it is currently only considered a class 1 misdemeanor if a person indecently exposes themselves in the view of a child, if it is the first offense.
Despite the presumably nonpartisan nature of the bill, Democrats fought to the bitter end to block it.
Democrats argued against jailing flashers because the predator could be “mentally impaired.”
They also claimed that the measure is an “attack” against “the transgender community” and that the law could be used to “ban drag shows.”
Speaking out against the legislation, Democrat state Rep. Leslie Herod said, “These types of laws have been used to ban drag shows, to target individuals who use the restroom of the sex that they identify with—a public restroom—to charge them with felony charges.”
“I am very concerned about the attacks against the transgender community that are happening across the country,” she added.
However, Herod failed to explain why it would be an issue to charge someone who exposes themselves to children during a drag show or in a bathroom.
WATCH:
🚨🚨 27 DEMOCRATS VOTE AGAINST MAKING INDECENT EXPOSURE TO MINORS A CLASS 6 FELONY!
A Democrat attacked the bill for “targeting” the transgender community in her dissent. #copolitics #coleg
📜BILL: https://t.co/Lgle6vX25U
🎧Listen for yourself: pic.twitter.com/Tq9wiryLMu
— Colorado House Republicans (@COHouseGOP) April 29, 2023
Democrat state Rep. Mary Young argued against jailing such predators in case they are mentally ill.
WATCH:
HAPPENING TODAY‼️
HOUSE DEMOCRATS filibustered for nearly three hours today AGAINST felonizing #IndecentExposure to minors.
Rep. Mary Young (D) argued AGAINST jailing perpetrators — incase they might be mentally impaired. HB23-1135 #CoPolitics pic.twitter.com/Uki3xQhlq9
— Roger D. Hudson (@RogerHudsonCO) April 28, 2023
Despite the strong opposition from Democrats, the bill did pass on Saturday by a vote of 37 to 27.
— Colorado House Republicans (@COHouseGOP) April 29, 2023
However, it passed with amendments to not apply the law if the exposure is in a public place with other adults present.
The amendments mean that the law will not apply if adults expose themselves to children during drag shows or similar events.
