Explainer

Why is California's governor changing every death sentence at once?

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548 people sit on California's death row. Governor Gavin Newsom has moved to commute every one of those sentences to life without parole. For prisoners with other felony cases, he must recommend clemency, and the state Supreme Court must sign off.

548

people on death rowSource: Al Jazeera Online · 06.11.2026

In a letter to residents, he wrote: "I take this action because I firmly believe that state-sanctioned killing is incompatible with California's values, undermines the foundations of our legal system, and diminishes each of us."

“I take this action because I firmly believe that state-sanctioned killing is incompatible with California's values, undermines the foundations of our legal system, and diminishes each of us.”

Gavin Newsom

The count starts from 1978. The last execution came in 2006, Newsom paused them in 2019, and on 5 November he announced this decision.

Path to this decision
  1. 1978Cost counted from here
  2. 2006Last California execution
  3. 2019Newsom's execution moratorium
  4. 5 November 2026Commutations announced

For decades, California has spent $6bn on the death penalty, while carrying out just 13 executions.

$6bn

spent on the death penaltySource: Al Jazeera Online · 06.11.2026

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The story

Newsom moves to commute all 548 California death sentences to life without paroleRead the article

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