A proposition presented by the city of Austin that will decriminalize minor marijuana offenses and impose a ban on “no-knock” warrants succeeded at the ballot box on Saturday (May 7), per a report from Austin ABC affiliate KVUE. KVUE reported that Proposition A garnered 85% of the vote.
The measure stops the enforcement of low-level possession crimes, but doesn’t legalize marijuana in the state capital, according to the station.
KVUE reported that nonprofit organization Ground Game Texas (GGT) was instrumental in Proposition A’s inclusion on the May ballot.
“Thanks y’all so much much!” GGT tweeted following the contest.
One of the people who hailed the approval of the measure is former Democratic gubernatorial candidate Wendy Davis.
“This is what democracy looks like,” Davis, who served in the Texas Senate from 2009 to 2015, said in a tweet.
Movement organizers told Austin CBS affiliate KEYE that a petition they circulated bore signatures from Austin’s younger adults.
The Austin City Council approved a resolution two years ago to end police enforcement of low-level marijuana offenses, according to KEYE.
KVUE reported that Austin police officers are now barred from handing out tickets for most Class A or Class B misdemeanor marijuana offenses since the new ordinance went into effect immediately after the poll results were known.
According to the station, the no-knock part of the proposition stemmed from the death of Breonna Taylor, a Louisville, Kentucky woman who was fatally shot by police who served a no-knock warrant on her boyfriend’s apartment.
