24 September 2012 :

The latest statewide survey by the Public Policy Institute of California (PPIC), released today, found that 50% of likely voters prefer a sentence of life in prison without parole to the death penalty, with only 42% choosing the death penalty.
On November 6, California voters will be presented this choice for the 1st time ever when they are asked to decide on Proposition 34, an initiative that will replace the death penalty with a sentence of life in prison with absolutely no chance of parole. The survey results were released the same week that the YES on 34 Campaign launched its first paid ads.  Results were similar in September 2011 (50% life imprisonment, 45% death penalty). The poll did not ask specifically about Proposition 34. According to the non-partisan Legislative Analyst's Office, Proposition 34 will save California voters $130 million a year. The initiative directs a portion of the money saved, for a 3 year period, to investigate rape and murder cases.
Almost 1/2 (46%) of California murders go unsolved every year, while more than half (56%) of rapes remain unsolved. Proposition 34 will also require that inmates work and pay restitution into the victim's compensation fund.