LOS ANGELES — Voters in California will have the chance to cast ballots on a referendum on ending the death penalty in November, according to state electoral officials.
The "Savings, Accountability and Full Enforcement for California Act," or SAFE California Act, garnered enough support signatures. It will be considered on November 6, when Americans head to the polls for general elections, Secretary of State Debra Bowen said.
If the measure is approved, the 725 inmates on death row in the most populous US state would see their sentences commuted to life in prison without the possibility of parole.
If the resolution passes, California would become the 18th US state to eliminate the death penalty.
When the death penalty was reinstated in 1978, "we did not have an alternative sentence that would keep convicted killers behind bars forever. We certainly did not know that we would spend $4 billion on 13 executions," the measure's official sponsor Jeanne Woodford said in a statement.
http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5iS6J-CS_0Wi6GQs85xYCzRbq7hjA?docId=CNG.e5e94cc80f051bbc64ecaf7ec5aad913.3c1...
The question of course will be if the ballot language says:
"Do you favor ending CA's death penalty ?"
or
"Do you favor replacing CA's death penalty with life in prison without the chance of parole ?"
If the former question is asked, about 65% of California voters will uphold the death penalty, if the latter question is asked, life in prison without the chance of parole leads by 10 in the polls.
So, does anyone know the exact ballot language already ?
Poll
