RT America -- November 5, 2014

California’s Proposition 47 passed on Tuesday with 58 percent of the vote, slashing the penalties for non-violent drug offenses. In an effort to dramatically reduce the size of the prison population, law enforcement will now charge users of heroin, methamphetamines and other drugs with misdemeanors instead of felony charges. RT’s Lindsay France has more on the revolutionary move.

Just one day after the town of Denton approved a measure banning the practice of hydraulic fracturing, the Texas Oil & Gas Association and the Texas land office are already suing the community. Commonly known as fracking, the natural gas and oil extraction method has long raised the concern of environmentalists and community health advocates across the US, which is one reason why the municipality decided it was in their best interests to outlaw the practice. RT’s Manuel Rapalo has more from Austin.