Will Newsom’s death penalty commutations stick?

Gavin Newsom reminded everyone that he’s still the governor on Thursday when he handed down a historic commutation of every California death sentence. We have more on that below. 

It was a big day in Los Angeles, too, where the city ousted Mayor Karen Bass and elected democratic socialist Nithya Raman. 

Come along with us today and learn more about those stories, as well as meeting our new education reporter and checking in on voting access challenges for Native Americans. 

As one of his final acts before his term ends, Gov. Gavin Newsom on Thursday commuted the sentences of all 548 condemned California prisoners and denounced what he called “state-sanctioned killing.” In an open letter to the public, Newsom said he firmly believes the death penalty “is incompatible with California’s values.”

• Newsom: “The people sentenced to death in California caused indescribable suffering to victims, their families, communities, and our state as a whole. … Many Californians feel that those who commit brutal crimes deserve to die. But as Governor, I have concluded the state cannot morally kill them.”

The California Supreme Court has to sign off on more than 400 of Newsom’s commutations, meaning most of the prisoners are not quite off of death row yet. An advocacy group from crime victims also plans to challenge Newsom’s order, report CalMatters’ Jeanne Kuang and Nigel Duara.

In an October letter to the governor, San Luis Obispo District Attorney Dan Dow said a blanket clemency order “would be a slap in the face” to murder victims and their loved ones.

• Dow: “A governor who uses clemency to overrule the voters in every capital case at once is no longer acting as the People’s elected representative. He is acting as a sovereign king.”

Newsom has long opposed the death penalty. Shortly after taking office in 2019, he issued a moratorium on executions. Three years later, he announced a plan to dismantle death row at San Quentin State Prison, which has since been rebranded as the San Quentin Rehabilitation Center.

Jess Nichol, the sister of Polly Klaas who was murdered in 1993 at age 12, supports Newsom’s decision. Klaas’ murderer, Richard Allen Davis, is one of the prisoners included in Newsom’s clemency, though his case will need further court approval. In a statement, Nichol said she used to believe Davis deserved to be executed, but later changed her view.

• Nichol: “The system tells survivors that execution matters to our healing. It doesn’t. It’s a distraction from what we actually need.” 

Read more.

An unprecedented move: Pending further approval from the state’s high court, Newsom would be responsible for the largest mass commutation of death sentences in U.S. history. His actions underscore how governors can be more proactive in stopping executions, during a time when federal courts appear less likely to do so. Read more from our partners at the Marshall Project.

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Other Stories You Should Know

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Barriers to Native American voting

Voting access remains out of reach for some California Native American communities, despite the state adopting universal mail-in ballots in 2021 to make voting easier, writes CalMatters’ Melanie Henshaw.

Unreliable mail services, a lack of nearby polling places and the rejection of certain types of identification are some of the obstacles Native Americans face when voting, according to advocates from the California Native Vote Project. 

The issues persist even after California passed a law in 2020 to increase access. The legislation calls for the creation of the Native American Voting Accessibility Advisory Committee, which is supposed to set guidelines to reach Native American voters, suggest ways to boost poll worker recruitment and issue advice on language assistance. 

But the committee, whose members are appointed by the secretary of state, still hasn’t been formed. A spokesperson for the office said it plans to begin recruiting members “after the November election.”

• Calvin Hedrick, director of policy for the California Native Vote Project: “We can’t allow them to promise us it’s something they’re going to do next year, we need to hold their feet to the fire and make sure it gets done.” 

Read more.

Our new education reporter coaches youth ballet

We’re excited to welcome Rebecca Plevin to CalMatters as an education reporter. 

She brings two decades of journalism experience, most recently as a reporter for Proof News, where she investigated how artificial intelligence is changing people’s jobs. She previously reported on equity for the Los Angeles Times and led the bilingual Central Valley News Collaborative as an editor for The Fresno Bee. Before that, she covered immigration for The Desert Sun in Palm Springs and reported on health for KPCC in Los Angeles. Rebecca graduated with a journalism degree from Northwestern University and reports in English and Spanish.

When she’s not reporting, you’ll find Rebecca taking modern dance classes and performing in community productions. She is currently choreographing two youth pieces for The Desert Nutcracker, a version of the traditional holiday ballet with a California desert twist.

Plevin is based in the Inland Empire. She joins an expanding education team at CalMatters that is now one of the largest in the state. Have a tip? Email her at [email protected].

And lastly: Setback for carbon capture project

A Kern County judge handed environmental groups a win this week, ruling that the state’s first operating carbon capture and storage project violated state environmental law.

County supervisors approved the project in 2024, which would entail injecting carbon underground to keep it from warming the atmosphere. But advocate groups, including the Sierra Club, sued to stop the project, arguing that it did not adequately review its full environmental impact. Read more from Emma Foehringer Merchant for CalMatters.

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California Voices

CalMatters columnist Dan Walters: If California’s redistricting reverts to the independent commission, Democrats will likely lose members — so will the party’s leaders decide whether to allow the commission to do its work or abolish it via another ballot measure?

CalMatters contributor Jim Newton: Mayor-elect Nithya Raman ushers in a new era for L.A., and while the democratic socialist inherits a city full of promise, it’s also burdened by challenges such as homelessness and public safety.

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Chan concedes to Wiener in SF House race to replace Pelosi // San Francisco Chronicle (gift link)