SACRAMENTO, Ca. — Actress and West Virginia native Jennifer Garner is joining the chorus of celebrities calling on California lawmakers to make state law tougher on paparazzi.
On Tuesday, Garner and Actress Halle Berry were in front of the California Assembly’s Judiciary Committee at the California State Capitol to speak for a bill that would change the definition of harassment in that state to include photographing a child without the permission of a legal guardian.
“The price paid for pictures of celebrity children is now absurdly high. They have a bounty on their heads every day. Literally, every day, there are as many as 15 cars of photographers waiting outside our home,” said Garner who grew up in Kanawha County and now lives in Brentwood.
Through tears at times, she told lawmakers she understands that she will be photographed because of her job. “However, my three children are private citizens and, more than that, at one, four and seven years old, they’re just little kids.”
Garner and her husband, Ben Affleck, have three children, Violet, Seraphina and Samuel.
“Being stalked has been hard for me, but it is beyond what a child should have to endure,” she said. “I am an actress but I am a mom first. My children aren’t actors or celebrities. They’re just kids like your kids or anyone else’s and, just like you want to protect your children, I want to protect mine.”
Some media organizations have raised concerns about whether the bill will interfere with news gathering.
The Judiciary Commission approved SB606 on Tuesday. It next goes to the Assembly’s Appropriations Committee.