Gov. Brown Vetoes Bill To Lessen Some Drug Charges
SACRAMENTO (AP) — Gov. Jerry Brown has vetoed legislation that would have given county prosecutors the option of charging lower-level, non-violent drug offenses as misdemeanors instead of felonies.
In his veto message Saturday, Brown wrote there are other efforts underway to examine how California sentences drug offenders. He said that the legislation, which would have made possession of heroin or cocaine a misdemeanor, was not the right way to go.
The legislation's sponsor, Democratic Sen. Mark Leno of San Francisco, has said the flexibility granted by his bill would reduce incarceration costs.
Anyone involved in selling or manufacturing drugs would not have been eligible for the lesser charges.
(© Copyright 2013 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)
