On March 28, two let­ters were sent to the California Commission on the Fair Administration of Justice–one from mem­bers of the law enforce­ment com­mu­ni­ty and the oth­er from judges, rais­ing con­cerns about the state’s death penal­ty. Thirty law enforce­ment offi­cers, includ­ing cur­rent and for­mer pros­e­cu­tors, police chiefs and oth­er offi­cers, signed a let­ter stat­ing that ​“California’s death penal­ty is bro­ken.” The let­ter cites mul­ti­ple rea­sons why the state’s death penal­ty sys­tem is not work­ing, such as the exces­sive costs of cap­i­tal cas­es, the risk of wrong­ful con­vic­tions, and the stress placed on vic­tims’ fam­i­lies. The sign­ers not­ed, ​“By pur­su­ing life with­out parole sen­tences instead of death, resources now spent on the death penal­ty pros­e­cu­tions and appeals could be used to inves­ti­gate unsolved homi­cides, mod­ern­ize crime labs, and expand effec­tive vio­lence pre­ven­tion pro­grams.” Signatories includ­ed San Francisco Sheriff Michael Hennessey, the Police Chief of Newark Ray Samuels, for­mer Director of the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation Jeanne Woodford, for­mer Deputy Attorney General John Duree, and eleven cur­rent and for­mer Deputy District Attorneys from coun­ties across California.

In addi­tion, sev­en­teen cur­rent and for­mer judges signed a let­ter to the Commission stat­ing, ​“We write to express our con­cerns about the cur­rent appli­ca­tion and admin­is­tra­tion of the death penal­ty in California.” The let­ter points to the incred­i­ble strain cap­i­tal cas­es have put on the entire judi­cial sys­tem in California. The let­ter con­cludes, ​“Any attempt to reform California’s death penal­ty must be com­pre­hen­sive, and must ensure a means of pro­vid­ing sus­tained and suf­fi­cient resources for the entire sys­tem. We urge the Commission to con­sid­er rec­om­mend­ing a mora­to­ri­um on the death penal­ty in California until sys­temic reforms are imple­ment­ed.” The sig­na­to­ry judges served on the California Supreme Court, Courts of Appeal, and/​or Superior Court in California.

The California Commission on the Fair Administration of Justice was cre­at­ed in 2004 to inves­ti­gate wrong­ful con­vic­tions, and to rec­om­mend reforms to make California’s crim­i­nal jus­tice sys­tem ​“just, fair, and accu­rate.” The let­ters were deliv­ered in time for the Commission’s third and final pub­lic death penal­ty hear­ing last week.
(“47 Members of Law Enforcement from California Cite Problems with the Death Penalty and Call for Reforms,” Death Penalty Focus Press Release, March 27, 2008; copies of the let­ters are avail­able on press release). See Costs and New Voices.

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