A newly filed Missouri bill “Prohibits the odor of marijuana alone to give rise to probable cause to search a vehicle, home, or other private property”.
House Bill 2132 was prefiled by State Representative Ian Mackey (D) on December 28. Yesterday the measure was passed through its first reading in the House of Representatives, and today it was heard for a second time. It will need to be passed through a third reading by the full House before it can be sent to the state’s Senate.
The proposed law states that “Notwithstanding any provision of law, the odor of marijuana alone shall not provide a law enforcement officer with probable cause to conduct a warrantless search of a motor vehicle, home, or other private property.”
Recreational marijuana was legalized in Missouri in 2022 for those 21 and older, with marijuana stores opening February of last year. The law allows for the possession of up to three ounces of marijuana, and the personal cultivation of up to six flowering marijuana plants, six immature marijuana plants and six plants under 14 inches in size.
The state’s medical marijuana law was passed by voters in 2018, with the first dispensary opening their doors in October, 2020.
The full one-page text of House Bill 2131 can be found by clicking here.
