Jun. 2, 2025
California's death penalty does not work
Despite its theoretical goals, California's death penalty system has become a costly, protracted, and ineffective relic--failing to deter crime, burdening the courts, and offering no real justice--making its repeal both a moral and practical necessity.
Jason R. Marks
Counsel
Moskovitz Appellate Team
Jason R. Marks is of counsel with Moskovitz Appellate Team, a group of former appellate judges and appellate research attorneys who handle and consult on appeals and writs. See MoskovitzAppellateTeam.com. Jason is a retired research attorney at the California Supreme Court, but has not drawn on any internal court discussion for this column.
The death penalty in California is clearly in decline. The
state's last execution was in 2006. According to the California Department of
Justice, only three death sentences were handed down in 2024, and only two so
far this year. No year since 2018 has seen more than five.
But there are still 589 condemned prisoners in California. The legal system continues to churn through these prisoners' cases, expending considerable time and money to deci...
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