Gavin Newsom, Democratic governor of California, announced the commutation of all the state’s death sentences to life imprisonment without the possibility of parole. A historic decision occurring just months before the end of his term.
On Thursday, Gavin Newsom signed the commutation of sentences for 548 death row inmates in California, replacing them with life imprisonment without the possibility of parole. In an official letter, the Democratic governor justified his decision by stating that “execution by the state is incompatible with California’s values, it undermines the foundations of our legal system and diminishes us all.”
The practical impact of this measure remains limited: California has not carried out any executions since 2006, and only thirteen inmates have been executed since the death penalty was reinstated by referendum in 1978. Newsom himself had already ordered a moratorium on executions in 2019. Experts nevertheless estimate that this decision could save the state several million dollars annually in judicial procedure costs.
Procedurally, the majority of commutations still require approval from the California Supreme Court, especially for about 400 inmates convicted of multiple serious crimes, which require the approval of at least four of the seven judges of the court.
Newsom, whose term ends next January, acknowledged that his decision “will hurt and anger” some Californians, while fully assuming his responsibility: “As governor, I am solely responsible for this decision and its consequences, just as I would be solely responsible for every execution.” He described his action as a “just act,” while admitting it “will always weigh heavily” on him.
The decision comes amid a national context marked by a resumption of executions in the United States. President Donald Trump, a long-time supporter of the death penalty, signed on the first day of his second term in 2025 an order reinstating federal executions, after the moratorium observed under President Biden. Three executions were scheduled for that very Thursday in the states of Indiana, Florida, and Alabama.
The civil rights organization ACLU praised the California governor’s decision. Its executive director, Anthony D. Romero, stated that these commutations “reflect what justice demands: the end of a racist, fallible, and inhumane punishment that has weighed too long on California.”
California, which historically has the largest death row in the United States, is now one of 23 American states, plus the District of Columbia, to have effectively abolished the death penalty. Twenty-seven states still maintain this sanction in their penal system.
Newsom, whose name is circulating as a possible candidate for the 2028 presidential election, will be succeeded by Democrat Xavier Becerra, projected winner of the midterm elections held Tuesday.
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