Marijuana legalization measure loses in California

LOS ANGELES – California voters declined to make their state the nation's first to legalize marijuana use and sales

"Today, Californians recognized that legalizing marijuana will not make our citizens healthier, solve California's budget crisis, or reduce drug related violence in Mexico," White House Drug Policy Director Gil Kerlikowske said.

Voters in three other states cast ballots on medical marijuana-related measures.

In South Dakota, voters rejected for the second time a measure to legalize marijuana for medical use — a step taken by California in 1996 and 13 other states since. Oregon voters refused to expand their state's medical marijuana program to create a network of state-licensed nonprofit dispensaries where patients could have purchased the drug.

California's marijuana proposal would have allowed adults 21 and over to possess up to 28 grams, consume it in nonpublic places as long as no children were present, and grow it in small private plots.

AP photo