The movement for a moratorium on executions in California began in 2000 as an informal collaborative project of Death Penalty Focus, the ACLU, and Amnesty International USA.

In June 2001, the first meeting of the coalition was held in San Francisco. Representatives from 16 organizations, including Amnesty International USA, Death Penalty Focus, the ACLU, California People of Faith Working Against the Death Penalty, the American Friends Service Committee, the First Unitarian-Universalist Church, California Attorneys for Criminal Justice, the Peninsula Peace and Justice Center, the Archdiocese of San Francisco, Santa Clara University Law School, Critical Resistance, the Buddhist Peace Fellowship, and the Metropolitan Greater Oakland Democratic Club, along with representatives of the legal community, met and formed the Californians for a Moratorium on Executions(CME) coalition project.

The large grassroots network that developed out of the CME coalition is impressive and effective. In addition to gaining 15 city and county resolutions, CME members gathered the endorsements of over 400 state organizations. The list (below) represents congregations, businesses, professional associations, unions, major media outlets, and religious, social justice and human rights communities. Each endorsement was often accompanied by a presentation to the group about the campaign and the value of a moratorium, thus greatly expanding public education efforts.

Individuals and groups throughout the state have also gathered petition signatures calling for a moratorium. With a solid foundation of 31,000 signatures from Sister Helen Prejean's organization, the Moratorium Campaign, the CME coalition gathered over 134,000 signatures, for a total of 165,000+ signatures. Civic leaders, celebrities, and activists gathered in Sacramento on May 1, 2002 to present the first batch of petition signatures to the Governor's office. The second batch was delivered on May 1, 2003.

Organizations Calling for a Time-Out on Executions in California

City of Berkeley
City of East Palo Alto
City of Menlo Park
City of Palo Alto
City of Portola Valley*
City of Oakland
City of Salinas
City of Santa Cruz
City of Santa Monica
City of Sebastopol
City of West Hollywood
County of Alameda
County of Marin
County of San Francisco
County of San Mateo
County of Santa Clara

100 Black Men of Los Angeles, Inc.
A Course in Miracles Study Group (Weed)
Abolition Road (Rohnert Park)
Action Coalition for Global Change
Action Resource Center (Venice)
Adrian Dominican Sisters (California)
Alameda County Democratic Central Committee
Alameda County Democratic Lawyers Club
Alameda County Democratic Party
Alameda County Public Defenders Association
Alpine Farms (Alpine)
American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU):
-of Northern California
-of Southern California
-of San Diego and Imperial Counties
-Berkeley Chapter
-Marin Chapter
-Monterey Chapter
-Redwood Chapter
-Oakland Chapter
-San Diego Chapter
-Santa Barbara Chapter
-Santa Clara Valley Chapter
-Sonoma County Chapter
All Saints Church (Pasadena)
All Saints Catholic Church (Los Angeles)
Americans for Democratic Action (Los Angeles)
American Federation of Teachers, AFT Local 2121 (San Francisco)
American Friends Service Committee
-Pacific Southwest Region
-Pacific Mountain Region
American Jewish Committee (Los Angeles)
American Jewish Congress
American Arab Anti Discrimination Committee (ADC- West)
Amnesty International USA
-California High School Chapter
-Hillcrest Chapter
-Lake County Chapter
-Los Angeles Chapter #467
-Marin Chapter
-Oak View Chapter
-Oakland Chapter
-Ocean Beach
-Palo Alto Chapter
-San Diego
-San Francisco Chapter
-San Jose Chapter
-Santa Rosa Chapter
-Sierra Foothills Group #628
-University of Redlands Chapter
Archdiocese of Los Angeles, Office of Detention Ministry
Archdiocese of Los Angeles, San Gabriel Pastoral Region
Archdiocese of San Francisco
Area Support Group for Family & Friends of Prisoners
Armenian Orthodox Church
Art & Revolution Convergence (San Francisco and Santa Cruz Groups)
Asian American Bar Association
Asian Law Caucus (San Francisco)
Asians & Pacific Islanders for Community Empowerment (API FORCE) (San Francisco)
Association of Micro-Power Broadcasters (Berkeley)
Associated Students of the University of California at UC Berkeley
Bar Association of San Francisco
Bay Area Campaign to Free Mordechai Vanunu
Bay Area Police Watch (San Francisco)
Berkeley Bowl Marketplace
Berkeley Democratic Club
Berkeley Fellowship of Unitarian Universalists
Berkeley Gray Panthers (Berkeley)
Berkeley Peace and Justice Commission (Berkeley)
Berkeley Zen Center
Beverly Hills Bar Association (Beverly Hills)
BiPol, Jewish Bisexual Caucus (San Francisco)
BiPol San Diego
Board of Rabbis of Northern California
Books Not Bars (San Francisco)
Boys and Girls Club of Venice
Buddhist Peace Fellowship (California)
Buddhist Peace Fellowship Prison Project
Butte Alliance for Medical Marijuana (Chico)
California Aggie (UC Davis Newspaper)
California Attorneys for Criminal Justice
California Catholic Conference
California Church IMPACT
California Coalition for Women Prisoners
California Democratic Party
California Faculty Association
-San Francisco State University
-San Jose State University
California/Nevada Annual Conference of the United Methodist Church
California Newsreel (San Francisco)
California People of Faith Working Against The Death Penalty (CPF)
-Bay Area Chapter
-Los Angeles Chapter
-Mid Peninsula Chapter
-Orange County Chapter
-Riverside Chapter
-San Bernardino Chapter
-San Jose Chapter
California Prison Focus (San Francisco)
California Province of the Society of Jesus
California State Conference of the NAACP
California State Bar Conference of Delegates
California Young Democrats
Campaign to End the Death Penalty
-Berkeley Chapter
-Los Angeles Chapter
-San Francisco Chapter
-SFSU Chapter
San Francisco Bayview Chapter
Carmelite Sisters, DCJ (La Mesa)
Catholic Worker of Orange County
Catholics Against the Death Penalty
Center for Environmental Health (Oakland)
Central California Criminal Justice Committee (Fresno)
Chico Bill of Rights Defense Committee
Christian Prophets of Jehovah, Inc. (Fresno)
Church in Ocean Park (United Methodist)
CISPES (Los Angeles)
City of Alameda Democratic Club
Claremont United Methodist Church
Community of Nurturing Conversation (Santa Rosa)
Conference Board of Church and Society for the United Methodist Church
Conference of Delegates of the California Bar Association
Conference of Social Justice Coordinators of Southern California
Congregation of Beth-El
Congregation of Rodof Sholom
Council of Churches, Santa Clara County (San Jose)
Criminal Courts Bar Association
Criminal Defense Lawyers Club of San Diego
Criminal Justice Consortium (Oakland)
Critical Resistance (Oakland)
Culver Marina Bar Association
Death Penalty Action Team (San Francisco)
Death Penalty Focus
Democratic Women's Club of Santa Cruz County
Democratic Women's Forum (San Francisco)
Democrats of the Desert (Riverside County)
Diocese of Oakland
Diocese of Sacramento
Diocese of San Bernardino
Diocese of San Jose (Human Concerns Commission)
Dolores Mission Church (Los Angeles)
Dominican Sisters of Mission San Jose (Office of Justice, Peace and Care of Creation)
Dominican Sisters of San Rafael
Dominican Sisters, St. Catherine Priory (Anaheim)
Dominican Sisters, St. Frances Cabrini Convent (Los Angeles)
East Bay Church of Religious Science
East Bay Community Law Center
East Bay Peace Action (Albany)
El Cerrito Democratic Club
Ella Baker Center for Human Rights
Esperanza! (Huntington Beach)
Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, Sierra Pacific Synod
Faith United Methodist Community Church (Los Angeles)
Families to Amend California's Three Strikes
Family and Friends of Prisoners Support Group
Father Bill O'Donnell Social Justice Committee (Berkeley)
First Hebrew Congregation of Oakland, Temple Sinai
First Mennonite Church of San Francisco
First Unitarian Universalist Church of San Francisco
First Unitarian Universalist Church of Stockton
First Unitarian Universalist Group of San Diego, Peace and Democracy Action Group
Fort Jones United Methodist Church, Administrative Council (Etna)
Franciscan Affinity Group (Berkeley)
Franciscan School of Theology (Berkeley)
Franciscan Sisters of the Sacred Heart (Altadena)
Fresno Center for Nonviolence
Friends Committee on Legislation of California (Sacramento)
Grandmothers for Peace International (Elk Grove)
Gray Panthers of Greater Oakland
Gray Panthers of Marin
Gray Panthers of Sacramento
Gray Panthers of San Francisco
Gray Panthers of West Contra Costa County (El Cerrito)
Greater Hayward Democratic Club
Greek Orthodox Cathedral of the Ascension (Oakland)
Green Party of Alameda County
Green Party of Lake County
Green Party of San Diego County
Hayward Democratic Club
Headwaters Action Video Collective (Redway)
High Desert Catholic Worker (Riverside County)
Holy Faith Episcopal Church (Inglewood)
Housing America (San Francisco)
Human Relations Commission, City of Los Angeles
Human Relations Commission, Orange County
Human Relations Commission, City of Palo Alto
Human Relations Commission, City of San Diego
Human Relations Commission, Santa Barbara County
Human Relations Commission, Santa Clara County
Human Rights Commission, Marin County
Human Rights Watch - California
Humboldt Mediation Services (Eureka)
Humboldt Unitarian Universalist Fellowship (Bayside)
Immaculate Heart Community
Inner Change (San Francisco)
Interfaith Council on Religion, Race, Economics, & Social Justice (San José)
International Jewish Peace Union (Berkeley)
International Museum of Human Rights (San Diego)
Islamic Networks, Inc. (San José)
James Markunas Society (San Francisco)
Jobs for a Future/Homeboy Industries (Los Angeles)
John George Democratic Club (Oakland)
Journey of Hope...From Violence to Healing (National)
Kehilla Community Synagogue (Berkeley)
Kennedy Club of the San Joaquin Valley (Fresno)
Kol Ami Congregation (West Hollywood)
La Pena del Sur (San Francisco)
La Raza Centro Legal (San Francisco)
Labor/Community Alliance (Coarsegold)
Labor/Community Strategy Center: Community Rights Project
Lake County Democratic Club
Lakeshore Baptist Church (Oakland)
League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC)
-State Board
-Salinas Chapter
Legal Services for Prisoners with Children
Lesbian and Gay Insurrection (LAGAI)
Little Portion Franciscan Fraternity (Irvine)
Los Angeles Catholic Worker
Los Angeles County Public Defenders Association
Los Angeles Times
Lutheran Office of Public Policy (Sacramento)
Lyrica Jerichombustion (Berkeley)
MAJESTIC: Mumia Abu-Jamal's Emancipative Stanford Team Investigating Change
Marin County Progressives
Marin Death Penalty Moratorium Movement
Marin Democratic Club
Marin Interfaith council
Marin Interfaith Task Force on the Americas
McDargh Communications (Dana Point)
Media Alliance (San Francisco)
Media Watch (Santa Cruz)
Men Enabling New Solutions (Los Angeles)
Mercy High School
Metropolitan Greater Oakland Democratic Club
Micah 6:8
Monterey County Interfaith Committee for Social and Economic Justice
Monterey Park Democratic Club
Most Holy Redeemer Roman Catholic Church
Mt. Shasta Religious Science Society
Muslim Public Affairs Council (Los Angeles)
National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP)
-Eureka Chapter
-Monterey Peninsula Chapter
-Salinas Chapter
-Santa Cruz Chapter
-Santa Rosa/Sonoma County Chapter
National Alliance for Positive Action (Southern California)
National Black Police Association
National Coalition of Free Men, Northern California Chapter
National Lawyers Guild, San Francisco Bay Area Chapter
National Lawyers Guild, Los Angeles Chapter
Neighborhood Unitarian Universalist Church - Social Justice Outreach Council (Pasadena)
Network for a Hate Free Community, Santa Clara County
New Fellowship United Church of Christ Church (Berkeley)
Newman Center Catholic Community, UCSD
Nicaragua Center for Community Action (Berkeley)
North County Times
Northern California Innocence Project at SCU
Northern California Interreligious Conference: Peace With Justice Commission
Northern California War Tax Resistance
Oakland Coalition of Congregations - Clergy Council
Oakland/East Bay Democratic Club
Occidental Arts and Ecology Center
O'Conner Hospital Parish Nurses
Office of the Americas (Los Angeles)
Older Women's League, San Francisco Chapter
OLINC Publishing (Fresno)
Orange County Coalition Against the Death Penalty
Orange County Death Penalty Watch
our developing world (Saratoga)
Our Lady of Guadalupe (Fremont)
Out of Control Lesbian Committee to Support Women Political Prisoners (San Francisco)
Pace e Bene Nonviolence Service (Oakland)
Pacific and Asian American Center for Theology and Strategies (Berkeley)
Padre Serra Parish
Pasadena Mennonite Church
Paulist Community of Los Angeles (Los Angeles)
Pax Christi, San Francisco Bay Area
Pax Christi, Sacramento
Pax Christi, St. Joseph-Fremont
Peace and Freedom Party, Los Angeles
Peace and Freedom Party, San Francisco Central Committee
Peace and Justice Center of Sonoma County
Peace Fresno
Peaceful Justice at Caltech
Peninsula Peace and Justice Center (Palo Alto)
People For Justice (San Diego)
People Power! (Santa Cruz)
Petaluma Progressives
Physicians for Social Responsibility, Los Angeles Chapter
Pilgrim's Hope Bible Church (Los Angeles)
Poor Claire Missionary Sisters
Porterville Unitarian Universalist Fellowship (Tulare County)
Prison Activist Resource Center (Berkeley)
Prison Educational Foundation of Sonoma County
Prison Moratorium Project (Oakland)
Prison Radio Project (San Francisco)
Progressive Jewish Alliance (Los Angeles)
Pro-Lifers for Peace and Justice
PUEBLO (Oakland)
Queen of Angels Catholic Church (Alpine)
Rabbinic Association of Greater San Jose
Rainbow/PUSH Coalition
Religious of the Sacred Heart of Mary- Leadership Team of the Western American Province
Religious Society of Friends, Central Coast Preparative Meeting
Religious Society of Friends, Chico
Religious Society of Friends, Inland Valley
Religious Society of Friends, Marin
Religious Society of Friends, Monterey Peninsula
Religious Society of Friends, Orange Grove Meeting
Religious Society of Friends, Palo Alto
Religious Society of Friends, Redwood Forest
Religious Society of Friends, San Francisco
Religious Society of Friends, Sacramento Meeting
Religious Society of Friends, Santa Barbara
Religious Society of Friends, Santa Cruz
Religious Society of Friends, Ukiah
Religious Society of Friends, Whittier Monthly Meeting
Religious Witness with Homeless People (San Francisco)
Resurrection Lutheran Church - Parish Board
Richmond District Democratic Club (San Francisco)
Rosalie Pizza (San Jose)
Sacramento County Green Party
Sacred Heart Church (Rancho Cucamonga)
Sacred Heart Convent of Dominican Sisters (Los Angeles)
Salinas Action League
Salinas Californian
San Bernardino Green Party Council
San Bruno Mountain Watch (Brisbane)
San Diego Criminal Defense Bar Association
San Francisco Bay Guardian
San Francisco Chronicle
San Francisco Examiner
San Francisco Food Not Bombs
San Francisco Labor Council
San Francisco Liberation Radio
San Francisco State University Academic Senate
San Francisco Women Against Rape
San Jose Mercury News
San Jose Peace Center
San Rafael First United Methodist Church
Santa Barbara County Green Party
Santa Clara Democratic Central Committee
Santa Cruz Action Network
Santa Cruz County Democrats - 27th Assembly District Committee
Santa Cruz Peace Coalition
Santa Monica Democratic Club
Santa Rosa Catholic Worker
Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital, Pastoral Care Department
School of Sisters of Notre Dame
Secular Franciscan Order - Potincula Fraternity
SEIU Local 616 (Oakland)
Siena Community (San Jose)
Sisters of Charity Blessed Virgin Mary (BVM), Sunland
Sisters of Charity Blessed Virgin Mary (BVM), West Leadership Team (Los Angeles)
Sisters of Mercy, Burlingame Regional Community
Sisters of Mercy, Fair Oaks
Sisters of Notre Dame De Namur, California Province
Sisters of Providence (Los Angeles)
Sisters of Santa Teresita (Los Angeles)
Sisters of Social Service, Los Angeles
Sisters of Social Service, Oakhurst
Sisters of St. Benedict (Grand Terrace)
Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet, Los Angeles Province
Sisters of St. Joseph of Orange
Sisters of St. Louis, Leadership Team (Woodland Hills)
Sisters of the Company of Mary
Sisters of the Holy Faith, St. Raymond's Convent (Downey)
Sisters of the Holy Names, California Province
Sisters of the Presentation (San Francisco)
Sisters of the Sacred Heart of Jesus (Los Nietos)
Social Justice Center (Marin)
Society for the Progress of Peace, Prosperity & Goodness (Diamond Bar)
Sophia Center (Oakland)
Southern California Criminal Justice Consortium
Southern California Federation of Scientists
St. Baranbas Episcopal Church
St. Benedict Catholic Worker (Fresno)
St. Bonaventure High School
St. Camillus Catholic Center for Pastoral Cares
St. Edward Community (Newmark)
St. Francis of Assisi Catholic Church (Sacramento)
St. Gabriel Parish Council
St. Gregory's Armenian Orthodox Church (Pasadena)
St. Ignatius Loyola Parish (Sacramento)
St. Joan of Arc (Blythe)
St. John the Baptist Pastoral Council (El Cerrito)
St. Joseph Church (Hawthorne)
St. Joseph/Old Mission San Jose (Fremont)
St. Luke's Presbyterian Church Session (Rolling Hills Estate)
St. Martin de Tours Social Ministry
St. Martin's Community (Fremont)
St. Mary of the Valley Church (Yucca Valley)
St. Patrick Respect Life Ministry (Moreno Valley)
St. Paul's Lutheran Church (Oakland)
St. Peter's Convent (San Francisco)
St. Peter Clauer (Simi)
St. Philip the Apostle Parish (Occidental)
St. Raphael's Church (San Rafael)
Survivors International (San Francisco)
Temenos Catholic Worker (San Francisco)
Temple Sinai (Oakland)
Tenderloin Housing Clinic (San Francisco)
Throop Unitarian Universalist Church
Tikkun Community (San Francisco)
TIKKUN Magazine (San Francisco0
Tools for Change (San Francisco)
Union for Reform Judaism- Pacific Southwest Council
Unitarian Universalist Church of Davis
Unitarian Universalist Church of Long Beach
Unitarian Universalist Church of Monterey Peninsula-Social Concerns Committee
Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Marin
Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Redwood City-Social Action Committee
Unitarian Universalist Legislative Ministries of California
Unitarian Universalist Ministers Association-Pacific Southwest District Chapter
Unitarian Universalists of San Mateo-Social Concerns Committee
United Educators of San Francisco
University of San Francisco Peace and Justice Coalition
Ursuline Western Province (Santa Rosa)
Valley Oak Park (Santa Rosa)
Victim Offenders Reconciliation Program of Monterey
Vote Health (Oakland)
War Resisters League, Southern California Chapter
West Contra Costa Rainbow Coalition (Richmond)
Wordnet Productions (San Bernardino)
Women and Work Study Group (Berkeley)
Women's Equity Council of the United Nations Association - San Diego
Women's International League for Peace and Freedom (WILPF)
-Monterey Chapter
-San Jose Chapter
-Santa Cruz Chapter
The Workmen's Circle/Arbeter Ring of Southern California (Los Angeles)
Youth Advisory Task Force, Santa Clara County
Youth Law Center (San Francisco)

*A majority of council members sent letters to the Governor in lieu of a resolution.