‘Baby killers, cop killers’ have an ally in Newsom, murdered girl’s father says amid death row controversy
California Gov. Gavin Newsom is reportedly considering commuting the sentences of all 563 people on the state’s death row to life in prison without parole. The possibility has drawn sharp criticism from victims’ relatives, prosecutors and law enforcement officials, who say a blanket decision would override individual jury verdicts and voters’ decisions on capital punishment.
Newsom imposed a moratorium on executions in 2019 and dismantled San Quentin’s execution chamber; California has carried out no execution since 2006. Marc Klaas, whose 12-year-old daughter Polly was murdered in 1993, opposes commuting the sentence of her killer, Richard Allen Davis, who remains on death row. California voters rejected a repeal of the death penalty in 2016, while narrowly backing a measure to speed up appeals; Newsom’s spokesperson says the governor believes intentionally killing another person is wrong.
In short
- Newsom may commute all 563 California death sentences.
- Polly Klaas’s father says a blanket move would deny families justice.
- California has not carried out an execution since 2006.
Steelman: both sides, in good faith
The strongest fair case each way — we don't pick a winner.
The case for
A governor could argue that commuting death sentences to life without parole avoids executions that are irreversible and reflect a punishment the state has not carried out for decades. A blanket policy could also treat people consistently, rather than depend on differences in individual cases, while leaving them imprisoned for life.
The case against
Opponents could argue that commuting every sentence would set aside the juries’ decisions and voters’ support for retaining capital punishment, without considering the circumstances of each crime. For victims’ families, including relatives who regard the death sentence as an important form of justice, replacing it with life imprisonment could disregard their views and the harm done.
Explained simply
California is one of a small number of US states that still has the death penalty in law. A death sentence can be changed to life in prison without parole through a commutation, a power held by the state governor.
Gavin Newsom became California’s governor in 2019 and has opposed executions while in office. Voters have also weighed in: in 2016 they rejected a proposal to end the death penalty, while approving a measure intended to shorten delays in death penalty appeals.
The debate involves victims’ families, prosecutors and law enforcement officials, as well as people sentenced to death. Marc Klaas’s daughter Polly was murdered in 1993, and her killer, Richard Allen Davis, was sentenced to death; the case is central to Klaas’s opposition to changing death sentences.