California has become the first state to ban stealthing - where a person removes a condom without verbal consent during sex - in a move that opens the door for victims to sue for criminal battery.
Governor Gavin Newsom signed a bill into law on Thursday making the act illegal and a civil sexual battery offense.
The bill, put forward by Assemblywoman Cristina Garcia several years ago, passed the Senate and the Assembly last month without opposition.
People found guilty of removing a condom without consent could now be liable for general, special and punitive damages.
Governor Gavin Newsom (pictured Wednesday) signed a bill into law on Thursday making stealthing illegal and a civil sexual battery offense
Garcia issued a statement celebrating the passing of the 'trailblazing' law which is the first anti-stealthing law in the country.
'I have been working on the issue of 'stealthing' since 2017 and I am elated that there is now some accountability for those who perpetrate the act,' Garcia said.
The assemblywoman said women and gay men had increasingly fallen victim to cases of stealthing - which she described as a 'grave violation of dignity and autonomy'.
'Sexual assaults, especially those on women of color, are perpetually swept under the rug,' she said.
Garcia said there is 'so much stigma' attached to the issue but that the law now proved it is 'a crime.'
'It's disgusting that there are online communities that defend and encourage stealthing and give advice on how to get away with removing the condom without the consent of their partner,' she said.
Garcia urged other states to follow in the Golden State's footsteps and enact similar laws.
'This law is the first of its kind in the nation, but I urge other states to follow in California's direction and make it clear that stealthing is not just immoral but illegal,' she said.
'More importantly, I encourage us all to not shy away from important conversations about consent in order to ensure we reduce the number of victims.'
Garcia cited a study by Yale University that showed cases of stealthing have been on the rise and which called the act 'rape-adjacent.'
The study's researchers found that stealthing left victims fearful of unwanted pregnancies, contracting a sexually transmitted disease as well as feeling 'violated.'
The bill was put forward by Assemblywoman Cristina Garcia (pictured) who described it as a 'grave violation of dignity and autonomy'
Previous attempts were made in 2017 to introduce a similar bill in Wisconsin but failed.
The same year, Democratic Reps. Ro Khanna, from California, and Carolyn Maloney, from New York, asked the House Judiciary Committee for a hearing to learn more about the practice as they argued that it is sexual assault.
The stealthing bill was one of two laws signed by the Democrat governor on Thursday - and both sponsored by Garcia - which give victims of sexual assault a misconduct greater rights in the state.
The second law finally puts spousal rape on the same par as non-spousal rape in the eyes of the law.
While spousal rape is a crime in every US state, up until now California did not acknowledge it as an equal crime.
Now, spousal rape is included in the broad definition of rape so it is treated and punished as seriously as the rape of a non-spouse with anyone convicted facing jail time and being placed on the sex offender's registry.
Stealthing is where a person removes a condom without verbal consent during sex
Garcia said the passing of the law makes it clear that 'rape is rape' and that 'a marriage license is not an excuse for committing one of society's most violent and sadistic crimes'.
This comes after 2018 research from the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence found that 14 percent of married women will experience marital rape in their lifetime.
Eight other states still differentiate spousal from non-spousal rape.
Garcia was a leader of the #MeToo movement in the California Legislature but has also faced her own allegations of sexual misconduct.
She took a three-month voluntary leave of absence in 2018 as a complaint of inappropriate touching by a former legislative staffer was investigated.
The claim was not substantiated but Garcia was found to have been 'overly familiar'.
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