Newsom Commutes Sentences of All CA Death Row Inmates

Contributing sentiments towards policy:

68% : But for the attorneys and death penalty opponents "who have fought for this, it's an incredible moment," Sanders said.
52% : "The death penalty has been repeatedly upheld by California voters and we as prosecutors represent the People of California and the greater good.
51% : "Until the law is changed, my office will continue to evaluate every death penalty-eligible case with the rigor, care and restraint these decisions demand," he said.
47% : " Sanders also said one of the benefits, given the shortage of attorneys who specialize in the area of law handling the death penalty appeals -- which explains why there have been long delays for some inmates -- means those attorneys can now work on other cases where they are needed.
46% : "The evidence against the death penalty has been overwhelming for decades.
46% : If the Legislature or the voters remove the death penalty, we will follow that law just as faithfully.
45% : "The power to repeal the death penalty rests with the Legislature and voters," he wrote.
45% : "By taking this step, Gov. Newsom has affirmed that the death penalty has no place in California and he showed real courage by confronting racialized injustice head-on.
43% : " Los Angeles County District Attorney Nathan Hochman also said his office will continue to pursue the death penalty in appropriate cases.
43% : " There are 51 inmates on death row from Orange County, and about 160 from Los Angeles County.
41% : " "You cannot have crime without punishment, and in those instances in which the crimes committed are so heinous that death is the only appropriate punishment, I, as the elected district attorney of Orange County, have, and will, continue to pursue the death penalty," Spitzer said.
38% : "So much for 'democracy,"' Essayli wrote on X. "California voters have repeatedly voted to uphold the death penalty.
38% : " Herr said he was disappointed when Newsom put an end to death row previously, as it allowed more amenities for Wozniak, who was convicted of killing Sam Herr and Juri Kibuishi in May 2010.
37% : " Chandra Bhatnagar, executive director of the ACLU of Southern California said, "From its inception, California has imposed the death penalty in a racially discriminatory manner, creating a two-tiered system of justice.
35% : "Public defenders called for universal clemency because we see firsthand how unjust our criminal legal system is, and nowhere is that injustice more final than on death row," Garcia said.
33% : " Steve Herr, the father of Sam Herr, who was killed by death row inmate Daniel Wozniak in Costa Mesa, told City News Service, "I was aghast at what Newsom had done.
31% : "The death penalty is cruel, irreversible, and stained by systemic racism.
30% : Newsom, a long-time opponent of the death penalty, issued an executive order in 2019 placing a moratorium on executions in the state "The people sentenced to death in California caused indescribable suffering to victims, their families, communities and our state as a whole," Newsom wrote in his message.
28% : Outgoing Gov. Gavin Newsom announced Thursday he will commute the sentences of all 548 people on California's death row to life in prison without the possibility of parole.
24% : "In 2016, California voters rejected an effort to abolish the death penalty and reaffirmed their support for capital punishment," according to a statement from ALADS.
22% : Newsom, who will step down as governor on Jan. 4 due to term limits -- giving way to newly elected Gov. Xavier Becerra, acknowledged that his action will not abolish the death penalty in California, only commute the sentences of those who are currently on death row.

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