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Push to relax drug laws gains big victories on state ballots

By DAVID A. LIEB, Associated Press
Published: November 4, 2020, 7:14am
4 Photos
FILE - In this Tuesday, Oct. 27, 2020, file photo, Sheldon Smith, center, holds the photographs of his children Deshawn Smith, 11, left, and Trinitee Smith, 13, both suffering from sickle cell anemia, during an Initiative 65 rally in Ridgeland, Miss. Smith and his wife Keishawna Smith believe their children would benefit from medical marijuana treatment for pain management. Initiative 65 would amend the Mississippi Constitution to allow the prescription by a doctor of up to 5 ounces (142 grams) of marijuana per month for people who suffer from more than 20 medical conditions. The state lawmakers are offering a more restrictive measure as an alternative. (AP Photo/Rogelio V.
FILE - In this Tuesday, Oct. 27, 2020, file photo, Sheldon Smith, center, holds the photographs of his children Deshawn Smith, 11, left, and Trinitee Smith, 13, both suffering from sickle cell anemia, during an Initiative 65 rally in Ridgeland, Miss. Smith and his wife Keishawna Smith believe their children would benefit from medical marijuana treatment for pain management. Initiative 65 would amend the Mississippi Constitution to allow the prescription by a doctor of up to 5 ounces (142 grams) of marijuana per month for people who suffer from more than 20 medical conditions. The state lawmakers are offering a more restrictive measure as an alternative. (AP Photo/Rogelio V. Solis, File) Photo Gallery

A nationwide push to relax drug laws took a significant step forward Tuesday as five more states legalized marijuana for adults and voters made Oregon the first state to decriminalize the possession of small amounts of street drugs such as cocaine, heroin and methamphetamine.

The drug measures were among 120 proposed state laws and constitutional amendments that were on the ballot in 32 states.

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