Hochman pushes back as Newsom clears death row
Los Angeles County District Attorney Nathan J. Hochman pushed back after Gov. Gavin Newsom moved yesterday to commute the death sentences of all 548 people on California’s death row to life without the possibility of parole, saying the governor can commute sentences but cannot abolish the death penalty.
Newsom’s move is the largest mass clemency in American history, according to the Death Penalty Information Center. Much of it isn’t final: the move requires the state Supreme Court to approve resentencing in cases in which people have more than one felony conviction, which Newsom said amounts to 382 of the prisoners on death row.
Newsom, who leaves office in January, imposed a moratorium on executions in 2019. California voters rejected repealing the death penalty in 2012 and 2016.
“When I took the oath of office, I swore to enforce all of California’s laws as enacted by the Legislature and the voters. The Governor has chosen to commute existing death sentences to life without the possibility of parole, as is within his constitutional power. But that power does not extend to eliminating the death penalty. Only the Legislature or the voters can do that. Californians have been asked on two separate ballot initiatives to abolish the death penalty and both times they have chosen to keep it for the most serious crimes,” said Hochman.
“Until the law is changed, my office will continue to evaluate every death penalty-eligible case with the rigor, care and restraint these decisions demand. As always, we will be guided by the facts, the law and the evidence. If the Legislature or the voters remove the death penalty, we will follow that law just as faithfully. My thoughts today are with the families of victims, who deserve a justice system that honors the law as it is written and pursues it with fairness and due process,” the county’s chief prosecutor added.
Becerra meets Rivas, Limón to map first moves
Gov.-elect Xavier Becerra met with Assembly Speaker Robert Rivas and Senate President pro Tempore Monique Limón at the Capitol yesterday, the first joint appearance of the state’s top three leaders since Becerra’s election Tuesday.
The leaders focused on four priorities: quickly directing money from Proposition 1, the $11.25 billion housing bond voters approved Tuesday, to affordable housing projects; protecting health coverage; stabilizing energy costs; and keeping California at the forefront of artificial intelligence while protecting consumers.
Becerra, a former state attorney general and U.S. health secretary, represented Downtown and East LA in Congress for 24 years, in the seat now held by U.S. Rep. Jimmy Gomez.
“Californians are facing a broad array of affordability challenges, from the cost of housing to keeping their health coverage to paying their energy bills, and they expect us to tackle them. Today was the first of many conversations with pro Tem Limón and Speaker Rivas about how we’ll work together to tackle these challenges. My mission as governor is straightforward: deliver a California we can afford, and defend a California we can’t afford to lose,” said Becerra.
Lieu in line for No. 4 House Democratic leadership post
U.S. Rep. Ted Lieu (D-Torrance, Beverly Hills, Santa Monica, Culver City, Manhattan Beach, Rancho Palos Verdes) is in line to become chair of the House Democratic Caucus, the No. 4 position in House Democratic leadership, as Democrats prepare to take control of the House in January, according to Axios.
Lieu, now the caucus vice chair, is part of the leadership slate running alongside Hakeem Jeffries’ bid for speaker, which includes Minority Whip Katherine Clark (D-Mass.) for majority leader and Democratic Caucus chair Pete Aguilar (D-Calif.) for majority whip.
House Democrats will vote on their leadership Nov. 18 in a closed-door election, ABC News reported. The post would make Lieu one of the most powerful members of Congress from LA County.
Lieu, who was born in Taipei, Taiwan in 1969 and immigrated with his family as a child, began his elected career on the Torrance City Council in 2002, then served in the state Assembly from 2005 to 2010 and the state Senate from 2011 to 2014.
In 2014, Lieu was elected to California’s 33rd Congressional District, succeeding retiring 40-year incumbent Henry Waxman, and he now represents the 36th District.
