We took an important step in protecting every San Diegan's access to education, healthcare and religious institutions, today, when Mayor Gloria signed our new Buffer Zone Access Law.  I wrote the law to protect patients and the people who serve them in two key ways:

First, any patient seeking care must first give consent before a protestor can approach them verbally or physically. This empowers the patient to determine who enters their buffer zone, creating a 8-foot barrier of safety. Up until this legislation was enacted, protestors were free to enter a patient’s buffer zone until they were asked to leave.

Secondly, organizations whose operations are impaired or disrupted by protest activity can now file lawsuits against individual protestors. This helps protect patients and staff from intimidation, harassment and physical threats.

My hope is that these much-needed measures will serve as a model for cities and states around the country. Together, we will continue to fight to keep access to medical care, education and worship free of violence and obstruction.

California has become a beacon of freedom for women across the country since the Dobbs decision. We need to ensure that anyone attempting to access healthcare can do so free from harassment and abuse.

I am grateful to Senior Chief Deputy City Attorney Heather Ferbert and Deputy City Attorneys Julie Rau and Eric LaGuardia for their work on the new legislation. Ferbert and Rau represent San Diego on the State Attorney General’s California Reproductive Rights Task Force, which the California Department of Justice convened in response to the Dobbs decision in 2022.