What he says: “I know we cannot execute people in our flawed legal system and remain true to our core values, foremost among them justice and human decency,” Newsom wrote in a letter to Californians.
- “Many Californians believe that those who commit brutal crimes deserve to die. But as governor, I have concluded that the state cannot morally kill them.”
- “We can now let these offenders die in obscurity while we forever remember and honor their victims.”
- “This decision is among the most difficult of my career,” he wrote.
Context: Newsom can commute some sentences himself, but prisoners who have been convicted of multiple crimes must get approval from the California Supreme Court before their sentences can be reduced, according to the California Constitution.
Yes, but: This will not end the death penalty in California. This remains legal even if the State has not carried out one since 2006.
- In fact, California voters rejected ballot measures in 2012 and 2016 to end capital punishment.
Flashback: Shortly after taking office, Newsom instituted a moratorium on executions, pardoning 737 death row prisoners.
- The ACLU has been pushing Newsom to commute death row sentences since former President Biden did so in 2024 for 37 federal prisoners.
- Other Democratic governors have also commuted death sentences, including North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper, who commuted 15 to 2024.
Zoom out: The death penalty is facing nationwide scrutiny following the failed attempted execution of Christa Pike in Tennessee and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s call for a public execution.
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