Now, certain drug offenses and thefts under $950 can be classified as felonies rather than misdemeanors if the suspected perpetrator has two or more past convictions for theft crimes.

California voters on Tuesday approved a November ballot ... steering away from recent progressive policies that critics blamed for increased lawlessness. Proposition 36 will make it a felony for someone to steal merchandise of any value after two previous ...

Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom strongly opposed the measure, saying that “Prop 36 takes us back to the 1980s, mass incarceration — it promotes a promise that can’t be delivered.”