Michigan Supreme Court: Marijuana smell alone no longer justifies vehicle search

WILX ^ | 7/24/26 | Kyle Beery

[Libloather]

LANSING, Mich. (News 10) — The Michigan Supreme Court has ruled that police can no longer use the smell of marijuana as the sole justification for a warrantless vehicle search.

In a 5-2 decision in No. 165764, People of Michigan v Devante Kyran Jennings,, the court found that odor alone does not establish probable cause that a criminal amount of cannabis is present in a vehicle.

Read more about the case and find the court’s opinion here.

What changed after legalization

Since Michigan voters approved a change to state law in 2018, possessing less than five ounces of marijuana is generally a civil infraction, not a criminal offense — except in some repeat cases.

Under the ruling, officers must now have something beyond smell to conduct a vehicle search for marijuana.

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TOPICS: Business/Economy; Conspiracy; History; Local News
KEYWORDS: marijuanasmell; michigan; search

[Tommy Revolts]

Ma'am, did you know you had a tail light?



No Officer cause I drive from the inside of my car.

[eldoradude]

Oh darn, the cops will have to think up a new lie.

[chickenlips]

This is a good ruling. After all the motorist may just be transporting skunks. /s

[fruser1]

What does the smell of alcohol justify?

[marktwain]

Field sobriety test.

[Brian Griffin]

“odor alone does not establish probable cause that a criminal amount of cannabis is present in a vehicle.”

That sadly is probably the fact.

[mfish13]

It smells like a skunk. Or worse.

[unixfox]

Here’s my problem. Any officer can claim he “smelled” marijuana. Whether it’s true or not. I was on a jury once where this was brought up. Frankly, I don’t much trust cops these days.

[John Milner]

Does blood dripping out of the trunk of a car justify investigation? With a bloody stump visible?

[montag813]

I used to smoke weed in high school, ages ago. I think being high is probably worse than being drunk for driving.

[Vendome]

But the odor of alcohol is?

Got it.....

[george76]

Colorado Ping ( Let me know if you wish to be added or removed from the list.)

[Ol' Dan Tucker]

Field sobriety test.

Certain levels of blood alcohol content can predict intoxication and resultant impairment.

For example, most states have laws that deem a BAC greater than .08% makes it unsafe to operate a motor vehicle.

There are no guidelines for levels that predict intoxication and impairment for marijuana usage.

[KitJ]

I forgot to mention white guys. Affluent or poor. We get skunk at every stoplight.

[nikos1121]

The proper process is, when the officer smells pot, he calls in the dogs. The dog verifies the drugs, and a search is made.

If an officer smells pot, and conducts a search, I would agree that would not be legal.

Question, is the judge saying the initial smell does not warrant the dog search?

[mewzilla]

There is, but it’s more labor intensive and costly than a breathalyzer.

There’s also no national standard for pot DUI.

And cases are more expensive to try, and it’s harder to get a conviction.

Meanwhile, perps are very well aware of all this and more are choosing to drive stoned rather than drunk.

Per AI...

“Nationwide Fatality Involvement: Broad multi-year tracking demonstrated that the proportion of U.S. crash deaths involving cannabis grew significantly from 9% in 2000 to 21.5% by 2018, continuing an upward trajectory into the past decade.

Deceased Driver Positivity: Recent multi-year tracking of drivers killed in collisions found that over 41.9% tested positive for active delta-9-THC in their blood systems.

Sourced to the NIH and the American College of Surgeons respectively.

[mewzilla]

You know what the judge cares about?

Per AI, info sourced to the state of Michigan...

“Michigan collects hundreds of millions of dollars annually from legal adult-use cannabis sales, generating over $331 million in total state excise and sales tax revenue from roughly $3.17 billion in retail sales.”

[Hot Tabasco]

If the officer can smell it from outside the car, wouldn't it be probable the driver is intoxicated?

I've seen Youtube videos of traffic stops where the LEO claims he "smelled" alcohol as an excuse to escalate the stop when there was absolutely no alcohol involved.

[Vaduz]

Yes another stoner state spreading the weed.

[trebb]

Seems like they might as well not be able to do a sobriety test because they smell alcohol on a driver’s breath either if the stop was for something like a broken taillight or other mechanical violation.