<< California voters's decision to provide drug treatment instead of jail for the state's estimated 24,000 non-violent, minor drug offenders makes the state the first in the country to mandate and fund drug addiction treatment as an alternative to prison, Nadelmann said.
"In terms of the broader drug policy reform agenda, this is almost certainly the most significant thing to happen in terms of reversing the tide on the war on drugs," he said.
Those opposed to the measure, led by California's prison guard unions, said it was a de facto decriminalization of hard drugs. Proponents, however, maintain that treatment will be a far more effective way to handle the state's drug problem -- and will free up some 10,000 jail cells for violent criminals. >>
(pinched from CNN)
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