WIRE: Colorado court rules dog-detected marijuana odor doesn’t justify search

Denver, CO — An alert from a dog trained to detect the odor of marijuana is not sufficient justification for a warrantless traffic vehicle search, the Colorado Court of Appeals has ruled.
Because the adult use of marijuana is legal under state law, the three-judge panel determined: “A dog sniff could result in an alert with respect to something for which … a person has a legitimate expectation of privacy.”
The ruling reverses a lower court decision.
A 2015 Massachusetts Supreme Court ruling similarly determined that the smell of cannabis emanating from a vehicle is insufficient to trigger a warrantless vehicle search. By contrast, a 2016 Arizona Supreme Court ruling determined that police may search a vehicle or a home based solely on the odor of cannabis.
Full text of the decision, Colorado v. McKnight is online.
For more information, contact Keith Stroup, NORML Legal Counsel, at (202) 483-5500.
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