An online poll conducted July 30 – Aug 1 shows California voters are in favor of keeping capital punishment as its harshest punishment for murder. However, a poll conducted July 16-17 found support for Proposition 34, which would ban the punishment, was tied with the opposition. The CBRT Pepperdine Initiative Test asked likely California voters: “If the election were today, would you vote yes or no on Proposition 34?”
The most recent poll showed 55.7 percent of voters would keep the death penalty while 35.9 percent would end it; the earlier poll showed 46.7 percent for and 45.5 percent against.
If passed, Death Row prisoners would receive life imprisonment without possibility of parole. Provisions in the law would direct $100 million to law enforcement agencies for investigating homicide and rape cases. Analysts estimate state and county criminal justice savings at about $130 million annually with a one-time cost of $100 million.
