Colorado Senate Signs Off On Weakened Drug Crime Bill

DENVER (AP) - A proposal to give drug offenders lighter criminal penalties breezed through the Colorado Senate - after the measure was dramatically weakened.

The bill approved on a unanimous voice vote Tuesday calls for a new look at criminal penalties for drug users. The measure initially sought to reduce possession of small amounts of some illegal drugs from felonies to misdemeanors.

Supporters of the original bill said it would have ushered in a new approach to fighting illegal drugs. But prosecutors opposed the change, and senators changed the measure to make it a study of how to sentence drug addicts.

The measure faces one more Senate vote before it goes to the House.

LINK: Senate Bill 163

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