Sen. Mark Leno and Asm. Jared Huffman have today essentially extended the state’s death penalty moratorium by at least temporarily blocking the expansion of the death chamber at San Quentin Prison.

Last-minute objections from Assemblyman Jared Huffman and Sen. Mark Leno have prompted state Treasurer Bill Lockyer to put on hold plans for issuing bonds to pay for the expansion of death row at San Quentin State Prison.

“I think there is a very good chance that we have prevented any attempt by this administration to jam this project through,” said Huffman, D-San Rafael.

Huffman and Leno, D-San Francisco, sent a letter to Lockyer on Wednesday asserting that sale of the bonds would be illegal until resolution of litigation challenging Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger’s veto of budget language on conditions for financing of the project.

“Because of the legal issues raised by the letter, we downsized our bond sale to basically take financing for the San Quentin condemned inmate complex out of the sale,” Tom Dresslar, a spokesman for the treasurer, said Thursday. (Marin I-J)

The state is under a court order (yes…another court order) to not execute until they can constitutionally carry out the death sentences. Michael Angelo Morales (and his legal team) successfully argued that the chamber is cruel and unusual under the 8th Amendment as it now stands.

Incidentally, California has carried out just 13 executions since the nationwide moratorium was lifted in 1976.