California voters sent a clear message this year when they overwhelmingly voted to pass a tough-on-crime ballot initiative that would impose stricter penalties for retail theft and crimes involving the deadly synthetic opioid fentanyl. 

Proposition 36 undid parts of a landmark 2014 law that downgraded several non-violent felonies to misdemeanors. Proponents considered Proposition 47, the original law, as a breakthrough in criminal justice reform, while others viewed it as a catalyst for an increase in property crime, drug abuse, and homelessness.