Analyzing Gov. Newsom's decision to commute death row sentences

This now we're joined by Professor Michelle Bratcher Goodwin of the Georgetown University School of Law. Professor Goodwin, good to see you. Thank you for being with us on Mornings on 2. Good morning. It's a pleasure to be with you. Thank you. This is a hot topic, an explosive one, too. What do you think about Governor Newsom commuting all of those death sentences to life without parole? Well, it certainly is a statement that he is making. He would like to be remembered for We're doing this. And the truth of it is, is that there are grave disparities behind criminal sentencing, including with regard to the death penalty. California would not be the only state where there has been a very close examination of the death penalty and who are the individuals who end up on death row. So there have been other states, such as Illinois, that's gone He's gone through something very similar. Now, there are people who are saying, look, this is happening right after the midterm elections ended, and we know that Governor Newsom is considering running for president. Is there any correlation in your mind about the timing of this? Well, there might be, and I think that if we look at this in a broader sense as well in terms of what in the United States, where's our humanity, where do we land here? Because we are an outlier amongst our peer nations in terms of the death penalty itself. And it's true that this is right after the midterms, but we're also within a space where in the federal government wants to have a public execution by firing squad. And if one were to think about. What type of nation would we prefer to be? I think that that question is on the line, and I think that Gavin Newsom probably thinks that it may be on the ballot, too. Now, what about this coming back to haunt him in some ways? There are people who say victims' rights groups, and we've run some of the comments of them already attacking him for doing this. Can this hurt Governor Newsom? Well, the truth of it is for anybody who's ever experienced an injury, be it domestic violence, be it through some other harsh action where they themselves or their family members have been hurt, what pain is significant and real? What we also know through academic research is that for people they may feel better by actually something that's more closely aligned with a kind of truth and reconciliation than by the death penalty. Research around the world has shown that very often the family members of individuals who have been hurt, who have been murdered, etc. They want something more than just death and the state imposing itself in An individual who committed a grave harm. I think it is really important accountability within these spaces and that is what family members actually most want is that they want accountability. Now is accountability the state executing that is truly up for debate for some but it's a question that's been answered in many other countries that say we won't do this. Yeah, it is a debate. It's always good to hear your thoughts. Professor Michelle Bratcher-Goodwin of Georgetown University School of Law, thank you for being with us and always good to see you on Mornings on 2.