Newsom Commutes All 548 California Death Sentences to Life Without Parole

California Gov. Gavin Newsom announced Thursday that he will commute all 548 death sentences in the state to life in prison without the possibility of parole, using his constitutional clemency power. He made the announcement in an open letter to Californians, writing that state-sanctioned killing is incompatible with the state's values, undermines the legal system and diminishes everyone. Newsom called the decision among the most difficult of his career and said he alone bears responsibility for it. The move does not repeal the death penalty, and prosecutors can still seek it in future cases. California last carried out an execution on Jan. 17, 2006, when Clarence Ray Allen was put to death, and Newsom imposed a moratorium on executions in 2019. Voters rejected repeal in 2012 and again in 2016, when they also narrowly approved a measure to speed up capital cases. Corrections records showed 561 inmates on death row as of Tuesday. Newsom is preparing to leave office after eight years.

The Daily Mail, the right-leaning outlet here, frames the story as Newsom sparing "every murderer" in one of his final acts as governor, labels him a Democrat, and highlights his statement that the condemned caused indescribable suffering. It also says it is unclear whether California law allows him to reduce every sentence. CBS News and NBC News, on the left, use plainer headlines about commuting the sentences. They foreground his moral reasoning and add context the Daily Mail does not emphasize: the voter-rejected repeal measures, the 2019 moratorium, the 2006 last execution and the death row count discrepancy. Both sides quote the same core passage from his letter and agree on the 548 figure and the sentence change. France 24 adds the state constitution's requirement of California Supreme Court approval for repeat felons, and cites the ACLU.