Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger opposes Proposition 19, which would legalize the recreational use of marijuana, but he offered a consolation Thursday by signing a bill that would downgrade possession of an ounce or less from a misdemeanor to an infraction.
SB 1449 was written by state Sen. Mark Leno (D-San Francisco), who said it will keep marijuana-related cases from going to court-clogging jury trials, although the penalty would remain a fine of up to $100 but no jail time.
"Notwithstanding my opposition to Proposition 19, however, I am signing this measure because possession of less than an ounce of marijuana is an infraction in everything but name," Schwarzenegger wrote in a signing message.
"In this time of drastic budget cuts, prosecutors, defense attorneys, law enforcement, and the courts cannot afford to expend limited resources prosecuting a crime that carries the same punishment as a traffic ticket."
A weekend Base jumping accident in a Utah canyon killed two people, one of them a...
A plane carrying passengers planning to spend a sunny afternoon skydiving crashed Sunday in Missouri, killing...
The Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool has become overrun with algae just days after the landmark underwent...
Former NFL defensive end Aldon Smith died Saturday at the age of 36, the San Francisco...
