Bill would analyze state's death row housing

By: RACHEL KONRAD - Associated Press | Monday, June 25, 2007 7:34 PM PDT ∞

SAN FRANCISCO -- Three California politicians proposed a bill Monday to examine San Quentin State Prison's death row housing.

The bill -- by California Assemblymember Jared Huffman, state Sen. Carole Migden, and Marin County Supervisor Steve Kinsey -- would require the Bureau of State Audits to complete an analysis of alternatives for condemned inmate housing by next April.

Until the study is completed, the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation would be prohibited from spending additional money on the proposed condemned inmate complex at San Quentin.

The bill does not attempt to decommission San Quentin or to relocate death row, its authors said.

"It focuses on identifying better strategies for housing condemned inmates," said Assemblyman Jared Huffman, D-San Rafael.

San Quentin has 6,000 inmates, about 10 percent of whom are condemned. It houses some of the state's most high-profile convicts, including Scott Peterson, sentenced to die for the Christmas 2002 slayings of his wife, Laci Peterson, and the fetus she was carrying.

But the antiquated death row facility is considered by some to be unsuitable for housing inmates, and improvement projects have run into numerous roadblocks and cost overruns.

In 2003, the legislature authorized $220 million for a new condemned inmate complex. Since then, the project's budget already has grown 53 percent from original projections, to $337 million, even before construction has started. The additional $117 million is needed before work can begin, officials said earlier this year.

In April, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger ordered a halt to construction on a new death chamber, which was being built to replace the cramped gas chamber that has been used for executions for 69 years.

"It's an economic boondoggle with skyrocketing costs, and we believe it will ill serve the people of Marin County, California and those who are condemned to these facilities," said Sen. Carole Migden, D-San Francisco.

First name only. Comments including last names, contact addresses, e-mail addresses or phone numbers will be deleted. Attempts to misrepresent your identity or impersonate any person will not be approved. All comments are screened before they appear online, so please keep them brief. Comments reflect the views of those commenting and not necessarily those of the North County Times or its staff writers. Click here to view additional comment policies.