Beating out 50 other beauties at Planet Hollywood Las Vegas

June 20, 2011 Miss California Alyssa Campanella took the crown at Sunday night's Miss USA pageant, beating out 50 other beauties at the event at the Planet Hollywood Resort & Casino on the Las Vegas Strip.

Auburn-haired Campanella, 21, took the stage donning both a turquoise gown and a blue and white polka dot bikini for the event's evening gown and swimsuit portions, and she answered a question regarding the legalization of marijuana for the Q&A section of the competition.

"I understand why that question would be asked, especially with today's economy, but I also understand that medical marijuana is very important to help those who need it medically," Campanella said.

"I'm not sure if it should be legalized, if it would really affect, with the drug war. I mean, it's abused today, unfortunately, so that's the only reason why I would kind of be a little bit against it, but medically it's OK."

Ashley Durham, Miss Tennessee, was the first runner-up in Sunday night's competition. Contestants from Alabama and Texas placed third and fourth.

Alyssa Campanella, Miss California, is crowned as the 2011 Miss USA by Miss USA 2010 Rima Fakih, Sunday, June 19, 2011, in Las Vegas.

Prejean spoke out against gay marriage at the 2009 competition and was later stripped of her Miss California USA crown for alleged breaches of contract.

"The girls are scared to death," Keith Lewis, the director of state pageants for California, New York and New Hampshire, told Fox News last week. "They witnessed with Carrie Prejean how a firestorm can create a road kill, and nobody wants to be part of a situation like that again."

One contestant made headlines well before Sunday night. In February, Blair Griffith revealed that she was homeless months after being named Miss Colorado USA. The 23-year-old beauty queen and her mother were evicted just weeks after her October 2010 victory.

After telling the directors of the Miss USA pageant that she had lost her home, Griffith made the decision to go public with her story. She has spent much of the past year traveling the country speaking about her experience.

"What I've learned is that there are so many in this country, especially families with children, who are unseen, who are doubled up in the homes of friends and family, who are homeless because they don't have a home of their own to go to," she said.