California to vote on ending death penalty

04-24-2012 • http://www.aljazeera.com

Voters in California will have the chance to cast ballots on a referendum on ending the death penalty in November.

The "Savings, Accountability and Full Enforcement for California Act," or SAFE California Act, garnered enough support signatures, and will be considered on November 6, when Americans head to the polls for general elections, Debra Bowen California's Secretary of State said on Monday.

Supporters collected more than the 504,760 valid signatures needed to place the measure on the ballot.

If the measure is approved, the 725 California inmates now on Death Row will have their sentences converted to life in prison without the possibility of parole. It would also make life without parole the harshest penalty prosecutors can seek.