DON THOMPSON
Associated Press
SACRAMENTO (AP) — More than 700 condemned inmates on California's largest-in-the-nation death row soon will have a chance to transfer to one of eight state prisons, a move a former district attorney termed "a slap to the face" of victims.
The voluntary transfers from San Quentin State Prison's all-male death row to other high-security prisons could benefit condemned inmates not only with more freedom and a change of scenery, but provide an opportunity to participate in rehabilitation and work programs.
That may sound like another in a series of steps California lawmakers and voters have taken in recent years to reduce criminal penalties. But it actually was part of a ballot initiative voters narrowly approved four years ago to try to speed up executions
