For the third time this year the North Carolina Supreme Court has upheld a warrantless search sparked by the odor of cannabis, The Carolina Journal reports. In the State v. Schiene decision, the court referred to two previous cases decided this year as precedent and said because of those decisions it should have never accepted the case to begin with.
“This Court recently reaffirmed that ‘we continue to follow our precedents which require examination of the totality of the circumstances to determine whether probable cause exists’ and that ‘the odor of cannabis is one factor that may be considered’ as part of this examination. … This Court has therefore already answered the single question on which review was allowed in this matter. As further review of this resolved issue would be superfluous, we conclude that discretionary review was improvidently allowed.” — Justice Phil Berger Jr., writing for the court.
In 2024, the state Court of Appeals had also ruled against the defendant, Codie Brice Schiene, in his motion to suppress evidence uncovered in his vehicle during the warrantless search. Benjamin Kill, Schiene’s defense attorney, had argued the odor of cannabis was insufficient for a search because the state allows the sale and use of smokable hemp products, which smell the same as illicit
