--- description: People would be allowed to smash car widows to save pets trapped inside, without the fear of being sued, under a proposed California bill. title: California Bill Would Allow People to Smash Car Windows to Save Pets image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt6f4047af6d7112da/698894b82dce01e2bd9e9357/dog-in-car.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [U.S.](/section/us/) ## U.S. Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # California Bill Would Allow People to Smash Car Windows to Save Pets  by [Melissa Chan](/author/melissa-chan/)  ## Melissa Chan Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close May 24, 2016 9:55 PM CUT  Dog left in the car Dog left in the carAaleksander—Getty Images  by [Melissa Chan](/author/melissa-chan/)  ## Melissa Chan Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close May 24, 2016 9:55 PM CUT People in California would be allowed to [smash car widows to save trapped pets](http://www.sacbee.com/news/politics-government/capitol-alert/article79331572.html "undefined"), without the fear of being sued, under a proposed bill. The measure, known as Bill 797 or “The Right to Rescue Act,” was set to be introduced in the California Assembly on Tuesday. It would protect passersby who leap into action from facing a civil lawsuit, [ABC News](http://abcnews.go.com/US/lawmakers-hot-car-push-pet-saving-bystanders-smash/story?id=39332403 "undefined") reports. “All the time we hear about animals that are dying being trapped in hot cars. These owners, they just don’t realize how hot it can get,” Assemblyman Marc Steinorth, who is one of three lawmakers who drafted the bill, told the Sacramento _Bee_. “I wanted to create legislation that enables us to be proactive.” Before taking action, bystanders would first have to confirm the car is locked and that there’s no “reasonable method” available other than forcible entry, according to the _Bee_. They’d also have to believe the dog is in imminent danger, contact authorities and then wait for them to arrive. \[[_Sacramento Bee_](http://www.sacbee.com/news/politics-government/capitol-alert/article79331572.html "undefined")\] ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4347125/california-law-smash-cars-pets/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4347125/california-law-smash-cars-pets/"},"headline":"California Bill Would Allow People to Smash Car Windows to Save Pets","datePublished":"2016-05-24T21:55:25.000Z","dateModified":"2026-03-31T09:41:11.959Z","description":"Without the fear of facing a civil lawsuit over it","url":"https://time.com/4347125/california-law-smash-cars-pets/","keywords":["California"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt6f4047af6d7112da/698894b82dce01e2bd9e9357/dog-in-car.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Melissa Chan","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/melissa-chan/"}],"articleSection":"U.S.","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt6f4047af6d7112da/698894b82dce01e2bd9e9357/dog-in-car.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"A cute little dog left alone in the car","caption":"","creditText":"Aaleksander—Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/us/","name":"U.S."}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/4347125/california-law-smash-cars-pets/","name":"California Bill Would Allow People to Smash Car Windows to Save Pets"}}]}] ```