Newsom Commutes All 548 California Death Sentences to Life Without Parole

Gov. Gavin Newsom said Thursday that he is commuting the death sentences of all 548 people currently on California’s death row to life without parole. In an open letter to Californians, Newsom wrote that “state-sanctioned killing is incompatible with California’s values, undermines the foundations of our legal system, and diminishes each of us.”

The action is the largest mass clemency of its kind in U.S. history, according to the Death Penalty Information Center. California has not carried out an execution since 2006. Newsom imposed a moratorium on executions in 2019, shortly after taking office, and the execution chamber at San Quentin has been dismantled.

Under the California Constitution, commutations for individuals with two or more felony convictions—roughly 382 of the cases—require review by the state Supreme Court, with four of seven justices concurring. Newsom acknowledged the court would be drawn into the process. The commutations leave the underlying convictions intact and do not repeal the death penalty statute; prosecutors may still seek death sentences in future cases.

Los Angeles County District Attorney Nathan Hochman stated that his office will continue to evaluate death-eligible cases with rigor while the law remains unchanged. Victims’ rights advocates and groups such as the Criminal Justice Legal Foundation have indicated they will challenge the commutations. Newsom is in his final months as governor and is widely expected to consider a presidential run.