CAMBRIDGE, Ill. (AP) — An odor of burnt marijuana doesn’t justify a search of a car without a warrant in Illinois, the state Supreme Court said Thursday.
The court affirmed lower court rulings that threw out evidence of a small amount of marijuana discovered during a traffic stop in Henry County in 2020.
It is illegal to drive and smoke marijuana. But lawyers for the driver argued that the smell of burnt marijuana is not enough to believe a crime has occurred, especially after Illinois legalized the possession of marijuana in 2019.
The driver denied smoking in the vehicle.
“There are now a myriad of situations where cannabis can be used and possessed, and the smell resulting from that legal use and possession is not indicative of the commission of a criminal offense,” Justice P. Scott Neville Jr. said in the 6-0 opinion.
A police officer said he searched the car because of the odor, the driver’s evasiveness and Interstate 80’s reputation as an east-west corridor to move drugs.
2025-01-13 17:461065 view
2025-01-13 17:44291 view
2025-01-13 17:222669 view
2025-01-13 16:361830 view
2025-01-13 16:28526 view
2025-01-13 16:12421 view
California judges make a good living. They earn at least $240,000 and can count on a raise just abou
ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. (AP) — Atlantic City Mayor Marty Small Sr. and his wife, La’Quetta, the city’s s
NEW YORK (AP) — For 10 months, rumblings, lawsuits, law enforcement raids and mounting allegations o
