22 July 2020 :
Clifford Bolden, 65, Black, was resentenced to life in prison. In a plea agreement with San Francisco District Attorney Chesa Boudin, death-row prisoner Clifford Bolden was resentenced to life in prison. Bolden was the only person from San Francisco on California’s death row. In a statement, Boudin said, “In recent years, an increasing number of Americans — and San Franciscans — have come to recognize that the death penalty is not only undeniably cruel and inconsistent with the values of a humane society, but also fails to deter or prevent crime. My office has not sought and will not seek the death penalty, and I am pleased that we have been able to ensure that no one previously sentenced in San Francisco will remain on death row either.” On Tuesday, a judge approved a plea deal resentencing him to 47 years to life, making him eligible for parole when he is 79. In return, Bolden won’t pursue further legal challenges. Bolden was convicted of robbing and stabbing an accountant, Henry Pedersen, 46, in 1986 after meeting him in a bar. At the time, Bolden was on parole after serving prison time for manslaughter. Bolden was sentenced to death in 1991. In a court filing, the office of District Attorney Chesa Boudin said the jury never learned that Bolden was suffering from schizophrenia at the time of the killing. Boudin also noted that Gov. Gavin Newsom has declared a moratorium on executions, although he hasn’t commuted any existing sentences. “In recent years, an increasing number of Americans — and San Franciscans — have come to recognize that the death penalty is not only undeniably cruel and inconsistent with the values of a humane society, but also fails to deter or prevent crime,” Boudin said in a statement. “My office has not sought and will not seek the death penalty.” California’s last execution was in 2006. More than 700 inmates remain on death row.
https://apnews.com/6dbdd36ef586b26d6b28993377c961c7
