Newsom commutes all 548 California death sentences to life without parole

California Governor Gavin Newsom announced on Thursday (November 5) that he will use his clemency authority to commute all 548 death sentences in the state to life in prison without the possibility of parole. California holds the largest death row population in the Western Hemisphere, about a quarter of all death sentences nationwide, and the Death Penalty Information Center called the move the largest mass commutation in modern U.S. history. (Photo: file photo of Newsom.)

A third take effect at once; the rest need the Supreme Court

Newsom gave formal notice to victims' family members and district attorneys on Thursday. About a third of the commutations will take effect on his own authority 10 days after that notice; the other roughly 382 people (about 70 percent) were convicted of more than one felony, so the state constitution requires the California Supreme Court to concur, and Newsom submitted those cases to the Court on Thursday. No timeline for the Court's review has been announced. The 548 people include 529 men and 19 women.

The death penalty stays on the books

Newsom stressed that the commutations do not repeal the death penalty — California voters rejected repeal measures in 2012 and 2016, and prosecutors can still seek death sentences in future cases, with juries and courts free to impose them. In an open letter to all Californians, 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."

Leaving office in January; Newsom accepts 'sole' responsibility

Newsom signed an executive order in 2019 placing a moratorium on executions, but hundreds of people remained on death row; California has not carried out an execution since January 17, 2006. Newsom leaves office on January 4, 2027 because of term limits and will be succeeded by newly elected Governor Xavier Becerra; the Associated Press reported that Newsom is considering a run for president. In his letter he said he accepts "sole political and personal responsibility" for the decision, while acknowledging the profound grief and backlash it would bring to victims' families — several district attorneys and law enforcement groups criticised the move immediately.

(Sources: Associated Press, Equal Justice Initiative, Death Penalty Information Center, November 5, 2026.)