The Illinois Supreme Court has ruled that the smell of marijuana alone, whether burnt or not, cannot justify a warrantless vehicle search by police.
In a decision published Thursday, the court addressed two consolidated cases where officers conducted vehicle searches based on the odor of burnt cannabis (People v. Redmond and People v. Molina). In both cases, small amounts of marijuana were found, and the defendants were charged with improper storage, as state law mandates that cannabis be transported in odor-proof containers.
The justices upheld lower court rulings that suppressed the cannabis as evidence, stating that “the odor of burnt cannabis, by itself, is not enough to establish probable cause for a warrantless vehicle search.”
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Introduced by Councilor Barb Warwick, the measure would classify medical marijuana users as a protected group, barring routine drug tests for marijuana as a condition of employment in most fields. Warwick stressed that current testing policies unfairly target medical marijuana patients and that these practices should be considered discriminatory.
As part of the deal, two cannabis flower strains—Chemmy Jones and Northern Lights—will be introduced to Germany. The country implemented a significant recreational cannabis law on April 1, which decriminalized cannabis, allowed home cultivation, and established nonprofit “cultivation social clubs” for adult use.
