The smell of burnt marijuana is no longer grounds to search a vehicle, the Illinois Supreme Court ruled Thursday. The ruling stems from a traffic stop in 2020 during which officers pulled over Ryan Redmond for traveling 73 mph in a 70 mph zone on U.

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,

In a 6-0 ruling, the court found that cannabis laws in Illinois had evolved to the point that just catching a whiff of burnt weed is no longer enough probable cause for police to search a vehicle.

The smell of burned cannabis alone is insufficient to justify a warrantless police search of an automobile, the Illinois Supreme Court ruled Thursday.