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California Supreme Court Hears an Appeal that Could Change Death Sentencing

The California Supreme Court last week heard oral arguments from both sides on an appeal by a Los Angeles man who says his death sentence violated state laws because the jury did not agree unanimously and beyond a reasonable doubt on the aggravating circumstances that justified his sentence. Don’te LaMont McDaniel and a co-defendant were convicted of killing a rival gang member and an eyewitness to the attack in Los Angeles

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California Commission Recommends Abolition of the Death Penalty

It was unanimous. “Eliminating the death penalty is a critical step towards creating a fair and equitable justice system for all in California, as the ultimate punishment is plagued by legal, racial, bureaucratic, financial, geographic, and moral problems that have proven intractable,” the California Committee on Revision of the Penal Code said in a report released last month. The recommendation reverberated through the political, criminal and social justice, and legal communities,

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Gov. Newsom Orders Innocence Investigation into Kevin Cooper Case

Declaring that, “In cases where the government seeks to impose the ultimate punishment of death, I need to be satisfied that all relevant evidence is carefully and fairly examined,” California Gov. Gavin Newsom late last month ordered an independent investigation of death row prisoner Kevin Cooper’s case as part of Cooper’s application for clemency. For Cooper, who has insisted on his innocence since his arrest in 1983, and whose high-profile

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Gavin_Newsom_ by brian kusler from new york, usa, CC BY 2.0 , via Wikimedia Commons

CA Gov. Gavin Newsom Signs Executive Order for Independent Investigation of Kevin Cooper Case

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Mary Kate DeLucco 415-243-0143 mary@deathpenalty.org — Sacramento (June 1, 2021) — Gov. Gavin Newsom on Friday ordered an independent investigation of death row prisoner Kevin Cooper’s case as part of Cooper’s application for clemency. “In cases where the government seeks to impose the ultimate punishment of death, I need to be satisfied that all relevant evidence is carefully and fairly examined,” Newsom said in his Executive

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Help us pass the #RJA4All AB256

Last year we passed the Racial Justice Act & vowed to come back to make the bill retroactive. We must pass #RJA4All to #ConfrontRacism not only in the future, but for Black & Brown people languishing in jails & prisons right now. Justice delayed is justice denied. #AB256

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Help pass the Federal Death Penalty Prohibition Act of 2021 in the First 100 Days of the Biden Administration

We have a real chance to end the policy that enabled the former president to rush the killing of the most prisoners in the shortest amount of time in over a century. The bill has already been introduced by Rep. Ayanna Pressley in collaboration with Senator Dick Durbin, who has indicated he will introduce a companion bill in the Senate.  Everyone who wants to abolish the death penalty is asked

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On Demand: 29th Annual Awards Event

Thank You To Our Sponsors! View Tribute Book Additional Clips: https://deathpenalty.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/Death-Penalty-Focus-Huerta-Message.mp4https://deathpenalty.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/DPF-Barbara-Lee-greeting-edited.mp4

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Guest Blog. A High-Schooler Against the Death Penalty: What Do I Know? By Ashley Xu

A Highschooler Against the Death Penalty: What Do I Know? As teenagers, or “children” under the age of 18, we are often disregarded and our voices suppressed because of our age. People like to use our age as an insult by saying “you’re just 16, what do you know?” like that’s supposed to strengthen their argument. I may be sixteen, but that doesn’t mean I can’t be educated. Age shouldn’t

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