A historic decision in the USA. The governor wants to spare the lives of 548 death row inmates

California Governor Gavin Newsom commuted all death sentences in the state to life imprisonment without the possibility of parole. The governor said he made this decision because he considers the death penalty morally unacceptable.

This is the largest group commutation of death sentences to other penalties in the history of the modern United States - emphasized the New York Times.

“State-sanctioned killing is inconsistent with California values, undermines the foundations of our legal system, and diminishes each of us,” the Democrat wrote in an open letter to Californians.

Why is the governor's decision particularly important?

The NYT noted that Newsom is not the first politician to make a similar decision. The newspaper also noted that no execution had been carried out in California for 20 years. It was also unlikely that the death penalty would be resumed anytime soon.

However, due to its large scale, Newsom's decision is particularly important. California has more prisoners on death row than any other state, and the governor's move means overturning about a quarter of all death sentences passed across the United States, the newspaper noted.

Newsom announced the decision two months before his term ended. The politician is considering running for president of the United States. The move may make him a more attractive candidate to liberal voters in the Democratic primary, but will likely expose him to criticism and attacks from opponents in the general election, the NYT noted.

In most cases, court approval will be required