Established in , and opening in , [ 4 ] 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. The correctional complex sits on Point San Quentin, which consists of acres 1.
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, 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 condemned inmates in California as of December 12, , only 10 remained at San Quentin, with the last 10 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. The death row at San Quentin was divided into three sections: the quiet "North-Segregation" or "North-Seg", built in , for prisoners who "don't cause trouble"; the "East Block", a "crumbling, leaky maze of a place built in "; and the "Adjustment Center" for the "worst of the worst".
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. The adjustment center received solid doors, preventing "gunning-down" or attacking persons with bodily waste.
As of [update] it housed 81 death row inmates and four non-death row inmates. A converted shower bay in the East Block hosted religious services. Many prison programs available for most inmates were unavailable for death row inmates. At the time the non-death row prison population was decreasing, opening room for death row inmates. As of [update] the San Quentin death row had a capacity of prisoners. All executions in California male and female take place at San Quentin.
