Illinois Supreme Court rules the smell of cannabis doesn’t warrant a vehicle search

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (WTVO) — Police will no longer be able to use the smell of marijuana to justify searching a vehicle without a warrant, the Illinois Supreme Court ruled on Thursday.

An officer would be given enough reason to search the vehicle if they see that the person behind the wheel is intoxicated, or if smoke is coming out of the car.

“The laws on cannabis have changed in such a drastic way as to render the smell of burnt cannabis, standing alone, insufficient to provide probable cause for a police officer to search a vehicle without a warrant,” Justice P. Scott Neville wrote in an opinion.

The ruling stemmed from a 2020 case in which Ryan Redmond was pulled over by Illinois State Police on Interstate 80 in Henry County. According to court records, Redmond’s license place was not properly secured to the vehicle and he was driving 3 miles over the speed limit.

The trooper allegedly smelled marijuana coming from inside the car, and subsequently found a gram of cannabis inside. Redmond was charged with a misdemeanor for transport of cannabis.

Redmond exhibited no signs of impairment, leading Neville to opine that the trooper’s “reasonable suspicion” would not have advanced to a “probable cause search.”

Recreational marijuana has been legal in Illinois since 2020.

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