San Quentin Rehabilitation Center (SQ), formerly known as San Quentin State Prison, is a California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation state prison for men, located north of San Francisco in the unincorporated place of San Quentin in Marin County.
Established in 1852, and opening in 1854, San Quentin is the oldest prison in California. The state's only death row for male inmates, the largest in the United States, was located at the prison. Its gas chamber has not been used since 1993, and its lethal injection chamber was last used in 2006. The prison has been featured on film, radio drama, video, podcast, and television; is the subject of many books; has hosted concerts; and has housed many notorious inmates.
Facilities
The correctional complex sits on Point San Quentin, which consists of on the north side of San Francisco Bay. The prison complex itself occupies , valued in a 2001 study at between $129 million and $664 million.
As of July 31, 2022, San Quentin was incarcerating people at 105% of its design capacity, with 3,239 occupants.
Death row
Men condemned to death in California were, in general, formerly held at San Quentin. Most of the former death row population, with some exceptions, have been moved to general population in other California institutions as of May 28, 2024. These transfers have been arranged to comply with Proposition 66 and are being managed by the Condemned Inmate Transfer Program of the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation. Of the 598 condemned inmates in California as of February 5, 2025, only 9 remained at San Quentin, with the last 9 inmates expected to also be transferred after completing needed medical or psychiatric care. Despite the transfers, the condemned inmates remain under sentence of death at their new institutions.
Condemned women are held at Central California Women's Facility in Chowchilla. As of December 2015, San Quentin held almost 700 male inmates in its Condemned Unit, or "death row".St. John, Paige. "A rare peek at San Quentin's death row, and conversations with inmates awaiting their fates as political battles swirl ." Los Angeles Times. December 29, 2015. Retrieved on March 22, 2016. As of 2001, San Quentin's death row was described as "the largest in the Western Hemisphere";Nieves, Evelyn. Rash of violence disrupts San Quentin's death row. New York Times, May 22, 2001. Accessed January 13, 2009. as of 2005, it was called "the most populous execution antechamber in the United States." The states of Florida and Texas had fewer death row inmates in 2008 (397 and 451 respectively) than San Quentin.The death penalty in 2008: year end report. Washington, DC: Death Penalty Information Center, December 2008. Accessed January 13, 2009.
The death row at San Quentin was divided into three sections: the quiet "North-Segregation" or "North-Seg", built in 1934, for prisoners who "don't cause trouble"; the "East Block", a "crumbling, leaky maze of a place built in 1927"; and the "Adjustment Center" for the "worst of the worst". Most of the prison's death row inmates resided in the East Block. The fourth floor of the North Block was the prison's first death row facility, but additional death row space opened after executions resumed in the U.S. in 1978. The adjustment center received solid doors, preventing "gunning-down" or attacking persons with bodily waste. it housed 81 death row inmates and four non-death row inmates.St. John, Paige. "A revealing look at California's death row ." Los Angeles Times. January 5, 2016. Retrieved on March 22, 2016. A dedicated psychiatric facility serves the prisoners. A converted shower bay in the East Block hosted religious services. Many prison programs available for most inmates were unavailable for death row inmates.
Although $395 million was allocated in the 20082009 state budget for new death row facilities at San Quentin, in December 2008 two legislators introduced bills to eliminate the funding.Egelko, Bob. 2 lawmakers team up to oppose new Death Row. San Francisco Chronicle, December 17, 2008. Accessed January 13, 2009. The state had planned to build a new death row facility, but Governor Jerry Brown canceled those plans in 2011.Riley, Charles. "California cancels new San Quentin death row ." CNN. April 28, 2011. Retrieved on May 9, 2012. In 2015 Brown asked the Legislature for funds for a new death row as the current death row facilities were becoming filled. At the time the non-death row prison population was decreasing, opening room for death row inmates. the San Quentin death row had a capacity of 715 prisoners."California's death row, with no executions in sight, runs out of room ." Los Angeles Times. March 30, 2015. Retrieved on March 22, 2016.
Executions
All executions in California (male and female) take place at San Quentin.Legislative Counsel of California. Penal Code section 3600-3607 . Accessed January 13, 2009. "The judgment of death shall be executed within the walls of the California State Prison at San Quentin." and "Upon the affirmance of her appeal, the female person sentenced to death shall thereafter be delivered to the warden of the California state prison designated by the department for the execution of the death penalty,[...]" The execution chamber is located in a one-story addition close to the East Block. Women executed in California are transported to San Quentin by bus before being executed.Corwin, Miles. "Death's Door : State's Only Condemned Woman Awaits Her Fate ." Los Angeles Times. April 19, 1992. Retrieved on March 22, 2016.
The methods for execution at San Quentin have changed over time. Prior to 1893, the counties executed convicts. Between 1893 and 1937, 215 people were executed at San Quentin by hanging, after which 196 prisoners died in the gas chamber. The gas chamber was constructed by inmates in 1937. In 1995, the use of gas for execution was ruled "cruel and unusual punishment", which led to executions inside the gas chamber by lethal injection. Between 1996 and 2006, eleven people were executed at San Quentin by lethal injection.
In April 2007, staff of the California Legislative Analyst's Office discovered that a new execution chamber was being built at San Quentin; legislators subsequently "accuse[d] the governor of hiding the project from the Legislature and the public."Martin, Mark. "New execution chamber infuriates lawmakers. Facility at San Quentin was built quietly" . San Francisco Chronicle, April 14, 2007. Accessed January 12, 2009. The old lethal injection facility had included an injection room of and a single viewing area; the facility that was being built included an injection chamber of and three viewing areas for family, victim, and press.State of California lethal injection protocol . Accessed January 16, 2009. Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger stopped construction of the facility the next week.Gov. Schwarzenegger stops construction of lethal injection facility . April 20, 2007. Accessed January 16, 2009. The legislature later approved $180,000 to finish the project, and the facility was completed.Chorneau, Tom. "Death chamber delayed by budget standoff, may miss Oct. 1 deadline" . San Francisco Chronicle, August 7, 2007. Accessed January 16, 2009.Mintz, Howard. State decides to seek public input on execution plan . San Jose Mercury News, January 6, 2009. Accessed January 16, 2009.
In addition to state executions, three federal executions have been carried out at San Quentin."Executions of Federal Prisoners (since 1927) ." Federal Bureau of Prisons. Retrieved on August 22, 2010. Samuel Richard Shockley and Miran Edgar Thompson had been incarcerated at Alcatraz Island federal penitentiary and were executed on December 3, 1948, for the murder of two prison guards during the Battle of Alcatraz.https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=x_9JAAAAIBAJ&pg=3652,1017239 Carlos Romero Ochoa had murdered a federal immigration officer after he was caught smuggling illegal immigrants across the border near El Centro, California. He was executed at San Quentin's gas chamber on December 10, 1948.
On March 13, 2019, after Governor Gavin Newsom ordered a moratorium on the state's death penalty, the state withdrew its current lethal injection protocol, and San Quentin dismantled and indefinitely closed its gas and lethal injection execution chambers.
Programs Prison to Employment Connection, A Better Way Out - Prison to Employment Connection is offered to inmates at San Quentin State Prison who are close to their release dates or have a scheduled Parole Board Hearing. After successfully completing a rigorous 14-week employment readiness program, inmates are invited to an Employer Day. Potential employers (PEC Partners) come to the prison to interview inmates, review their resumes, and offer guidance and support for potential employment upon release. VVGSQ – Vietnam Veterans Group San Quentin – Although the group had been meeting for some time, the name officially began on April 7, 1987. In 1988 they started the annual Christmas Toy giveaway, giving toys to visiting children. In 1989 they began the annual scholarship fund for high school seniors. They spend their time raising money and since 1987 have given over $80,000 to the community. The Last Mile started in 2011 under Chris Redlitz (entrepreneur and venture capital) initiative. The program aims to give resources and mentorship to inmates to help them find their way into tech startup entrepreneurship and reduce the rate of recidivism.'San Quentin Prison Demo Day Gives Entrepreneurs Behind Bars A Second Chance'. Techcrunch, Feb, 22, 2013. The San Quentin Drama Workshop began at the prison in 1958 after a performance of Waiting for Godot the previous year.Berton, Justin. When 'Waiting for Godot' played San Quentin. San Francisco Chronicle, December 23, 2008. Accessed January 10, 2009. The San Quentin SQUIRES ("San Quentin Utilization of Inmate Resources, Experiences, and Studies") program, which began in 1964, is reported to be the "oldest juvenile awareness program in the United States."City Youth Now. Programs. SQUIRES. Accessed January 10, 2009.Lewis, Roy V. Scared Straight – California style: evaluation of the San Quentin Squires Program. Criminal Justice and Behavior, vol. 10, no. 2, June 1983, pages 209–226. It involves inmates at the prison interacting with troubled youths for the purpose of deterring them from crime, and was the subject of a 1978 documentary film Squires of San Quentin. In 1983, a randomized controlled study was published that found that the program produced no overall reduction in delinquency. The program was still functional as of 2008.Hindery, Robin. Lessons through life. Daily Democrat (Woodland, CA), February 24, 2008.