Oregon Gov. Kate Brown Commutes All Death Sentences in State to Life Without Parole

Anna Lazarus Caplan
·2 min read
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Governor of Oregon Kate Brown speaks during the Opening Ceremony on day one of the World Athletics Championships Oregon22
Governor of Oregon Kate Brown speaks during the Opening Ceremony on day one of the World Athletics Championships Oregon22
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Carmen Mandato/Getty Images Governor of Oregon Kate Brown

Gov. Kate Brown is putting an end to the death penalty in the state of Oregon.

"I have long believed that justice is not advanced by taking a life, and the state should not be in the business of executing people—even if a terrible crime placed them in prison," Brown said in a statement Tuesday.

The Democratic governor's order, which takes effect on Wednesday, will commute the sentences of 17 inmates on Oregon's death row to life imprisonment without the possibility of parole, according to the governor's office.

"Since taking office in 2015, I have continued Oregon's moratorium on executions because the death penalty is both dysfunctional and immoral," Brown added. "Today I am commuting Oregon's death row so that we will no longer have anyone serving a sentence of death and facing execution in this state. This is a value that many Oregonians share."

The state has not executed a prisoner since 1997.

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Oregon Gov. Kate Brown speaks in San Francisco, on . Gov. Brown is pardoning an estimated 45,000 people convicted of simple possession of marijuana
Oregon Gov. Kate Brown speaks in San Francisco, on . Gov. Brown is pardoning an estimated 45,000 people convicted of simple possession of marijuana

Jeff Chiu/AP/Shutterstock

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Brown said that the decision is "not based on any rehabilitative efforts by the individuals on death row," but instead "reflects the recognition that the death penalty is immoral."

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"It is an irreversible punishment that does not allow for correction; is wasteful of taxpayer dollars; does not make communities safer; and cannot be and never has been administered fairly and equitably," she said.

"I also recognize the pain and uncertainty victims experience as they wait for decades while individuals sit on death row—especially in states with moratoriums on executions—without resolution," she added. "My hope is that this commutation will bring us a significant step closer to finality in these cases."

The execution room at the Oregon State Penitentiary is pictured on Nov. 18, 2011, in Salem, Ore.
The execution room at the Oregon State Penitentiary is pictured on Nov. 18, 2011, in Salem, Ore.

Rick Bowmer/AP/Shutterstock The execution room at Oregon State Penitentiary in 2011

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Brown is among a handful of governors across the nation who have taken similar stances on the death penalty.

In 2019, California Gov. Gavin Newsom announced that the state's death row would be dismantled within two years and leaders in Pennsylvania, Colorado and Washington have also halted executions.