Speed Reads
Midterm voters approved the legalization of recreational marijuana use in Oregon, Alaska, and Washington, D.C. last night, but California's Prop. 47 is a major strike against the war on drugs, too.
The ballot measure, which will help alleviate the state's chronic prison crowding and save taxpayers hundreds of millions of dollars as a result, will reduce sentencing on drug possession by changing the charge from a felony to a misdemeanor. The new maximum sentence for drug possession will be one year, and those currently serving longer sentences will have the right to appeal for a sentence reduction.