By MES Dispatch Staff
The Briefing
- California Gov. Gavin Newsom announced Thursday that he will commute all 548 death sentences in the state, 529 men’s and 19 women’s, to life in prison without the possibility of parole.
- Newsom wrote that “state-sanctioned killing is incompatible with California’s values,” and called the decision among the hardest of his career because it will reopen painful memories for victims’ families.
- Because the state constitution requires the California Supreme Court’s approval to grant clemency to anyone convicted of a felony more than once, the court would have to approve 382 of the commutations, about 70%, according to Newsom’s office.
- The American Civil Liberties Union praised the move, while the California District Attorneys Association had warned Newsom beforehand that a blanket commutation disregards victims’ families and overrides voter-approved law.
- Newsom placed a moratorium on executions in 2019, and California voters rejected a 2016 ballot measure that would have repealed the death penalty.
SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Gov. Gavin Newsom announced Thursday that he will commute every death sentence in California to life in prison without the possibility of parole, affecting all 548 people on the state’s death row as he prepares to leave office after eight years, the Associated Press reported.
“I take this action because I firmly believe that state-sanctioned killing is incompatible with California’s values, undermines the foundations of our legal system, and diminishes each of us,” Newsom said in a letter. He called the decision among the most difficult of his career because it will bring back painful memories for the families of crime victims. “As Governor, I alone bear responsibility for this decision and its impact, just as I alone would bear responsibility for each execution,” he wrote.
According to Newsom’s office, 529 of those on death row are men and 19 are women. The state constitution requires approval from the California Supreme Court to grant clemency to anyone convicted of a felony more than once, which means the court would need to sign off on 382 of the commutations, or roughly 70%.
Newsom placed a moratorium on executions in 2019, but hundreds of people remained on death row. California voters rejected a 2016 ballot measure that would have repealed the death penalty. Local prosecutors have continued to pursue capital cases since the moratorium, and at least 25 people have received death sentences, 11 of them in Riverside County, CalMatters reported.
The American Civil Liberties Union, which says the death penalty has been applied with racial bias, welcomed the decision. “These commutations reflect what justice demands: an end to a racist, error-prone, and inhumane punishment,” ACLU executive director Anthony Romero said in a statement. The ACLU is involved in an ongoing legal challenge alleging that California’s death penalty statute is racially discriminatory and unconstitutional.
The California District Attorneys Association sent Newsom a formal warning ahead of the announcement, arguing that a blanket commutation would disregard victims’ families and override voter-approved capital punishment laws. In its statement, the association said the cases represent real people whose lives were taken and families who trusted the justice system.
Newsom has said previously that it is wrong for the government to kill its citizens and that capital punishment has in practice discriminated against people who are mentally ill and people of color.