Michigan Supreme Court: Cannabis Odor Alone is Insufficient Probable Cause for Warrantless Vehicle Search – Ganjapreneur | Where to buy Skittles Moonrock online

The Michigan Supreme Court ruled last week that, in the wake of adult-use cannabis legalization in the state, the odor of cannabis alone is insufficient probable cause for police to search a vehicle, the Detroit Free Press reports. The 5-1 decision overturned a 25-year-old legal precedent.

Writing for the majority, Justice Megan Cavanagh said that “The appropriate rule is that the smell of marijuana is one factor that may play a role in the probable-cause determination.”

“A warrantless search must be based on probable cause, and the smell of marijuana is insufficient to support probable cause.” — Cavanagh, in the majority opinion

The decision comes from a 2020 case during which police officers conducting compliance checks observed a vehicle parked on the side of the street and smelled the odor of burning cannabis. The officer approached the vehicle, and asked if the occupants were smoking marijuana, which they denied. The occupants were asked to get out of the car, at which time an officer noticed a handgun on the passenger seat. One person was arrested and charged with carrying a concealed weapon, being a felon in possession of a firearm, and possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony.

The Supreme Court decision found that the search was unconstitutional because the state’s adult-use law allows adults to possess and consume cannabis and that because the car was parked, no laws were being broken at the time of the search.

The decision did leave the door open for police to use the odor of cannabis in “developing probable cause concerning illegal activity.”

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