LA Times Veteran Political Columnist Urges No on Prop 35

LOS ANGELES—George Skelton is a political columnist who has covered government and politics for the Los Angeles Times since 1974. Over the years, he’s worked as a political writer in Los Angeles, Sacramento bureau chief and White House correspondent. Since 1993, he’s written a column on Sacramento politics called “Capitol Journal” and offers his advice on state ballot measures. Skelton can also smell a bad proposition a mile away. His take on Proposition 35, about which he advises voting NO, is typically succinct: Prop. 35 attempts to fight sex slavery. It would significantly increase sentences and expand the definition of human trafficking to include pornography depicting child sex. Rules of evidence would be changed to bar a defendant from bringing up an alleged victim's sexual history. This proposal is just off target. California and the federal government already have tough penalties. The feds do most of the prosecuting because victims usually are transported across borders. The measure could endanger a defendant's right to a fair trial. This is the kind of major law change that should be produced through public hearings and expert testimony in the legislative process.