Gov. Gavin Newsom is weighing whether to spare the lives of all 563 prisoners on death row in California as one of his final acts in office. He has ramped up conversations with top advisers following a botched execution in Tennessee, though he had been deliberating the move for months. California has not executed a prisoner in 20 years, and the leading candidate to succeed him, Xavier Becerra, has committed to maintaining a moratorium on capital punishment. A mass commutation would reduce all current death sentences to life in prison without parole, regardless of who runs the state in the future.
The governor has received conflicting advice from his closest advisers. Some have urged him to take a bold step that reflects his moral opposition to capital punishment before he leaves office in January. Others have warned that he could face political attacks if he were to show mercy to convicted killers.
While other governors have ended death sentences en masse before, the move Mr. Newsom is considering would be the largest clearing of a death row in modern American history. In 2003, Gov. George Ryan of Illinois commuted death sentences for 167 inmates right before he left office. California's prisoners comprise roughly one-fourth of people facing capital punishment nationwide.
Source: New York Times Top Stories · Summarized by HeadlinesBriefing