TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (CBS12) — Florida police can’t search a vehicle solely because it smells like marijuana, a state court said on Wednesday.

According to CBS12’s media partners, News Service of Florida, the 2nd District Court of Appeal’s main opinion said that for “generations, cannabis was illegal in all forms — thereby rendering its distinct odor immediately indicative of criminal activity.” However, legislative changes have altered the definition and regulation, which has now made it legal to possess in multiple forms.

The court cited the Fourth Amendment’s protection against unreasonable searches and seizures, rejecting what it called a ‘plain smell doctrine’ related to cannabis.

“In light of significant legislative amendments to the definition and regulation of cannabis, its mere odor can no longer establish that it is ‘immediately apparent’ that the substance is contraband,” Judge Nelly Khouzam wrote in an opinion fully joined by nine other judges. “Accordingly, the plain smell doctrine can no longer establish probable cause based solely on the odor of cannabis. Rather, we now align the Fourth Amendment analysis for cannabis with the test that applies to other suspected contraband, such that its odor is a valid factor to be considered along with all others under the totality of the circumstances.”

See also: New Florida law can have huge impact on human trafficking cases

Three other judges wrote opinions, including Judge J. Andrew Atkinson, who wrote it’s, “It is pertinent to the resolution of this case on its facts is that an officer who smells either raw cannabis or the smoke from burnt or burning cannabis has encountered an odor that is no more likely to be indicative of criminal activity than licit use of a legal substance. On this record and under the statutes as they currently read, that smell, in isolation, does not give rise to probable cause to justify a search.”

However, Judge Craig Villanti, joined by Judge Anne-Leigh Gaylord Moe, wrote that while Florida’s legalization of medical marijuana and hemp products changed the legal landscape, it did not decriminalize the possession of marijuana. Villanti also raised concerns about the dangers of driving while impaired by cannabis.

“People who traverse our Florida highways are entitled to share the roads with sober and safe drivers,” Villanti wrote. “The majority interpretation of the law and wholesale erosion of well-developed, reasonable Fourth Amendment analysis will only undermine the evolved public expectation that law enforcement will continue to protect them as they motor along Florida’s highways.”

The judges referenced a 2023 case in which officers stopped a car, smelled marijuana, and searched the vehicle, ultimately finding bags containing cannabis.

The suspect, identified as Darrielle Ortiz Williams, was a passenger in the vehicle and was found to have Molly on their person. The circuit judge over that case found that Williams had violated her probation, which led to an appeal that was considered by a full appellate court.

The decision on Wednesday reversed a 2021 decision by the 2nd District that gave law enforcement the power to conduct searches based on the smell of cannabis.

Chief Judge Matthew Lucas and Judges Stevan Northcutt, Morris Silberman, Robert Morris, Anthony Black, Daniel Sleet, Susan Rothstein-Youakim, Andrea Teves Smith, and Suzanne Labrit joined the main opinion.

Judges Patricia Kelly and Edward LaRose concurred, along with Judge Atkinson.

Find more ways to stay up to date with your latest local news. Sign up for our newsletter to get the day’s top headlines delivered right to your inbox. Subscribe to our YouTube channel for the biggest stories and can’t miss video.