Illinois state Rep. Adam Niemerg (R-Dieterich) is weighing in on legislation recently passed by Democratic senators in Springfield that would prohibit the smell of marijuana from being used by police officers as the sole probable cause to search a vehicle or its passengers.
“As citizens we have Constitutional safeguards for illegal searches and seizures,” Niemerg recently told the Kankakee Times. “The police officers I know respect the law and respect the Constitution. This legislation seems like a solution in search of problem.”
Senate Bill 125 is sponsored by Illinois state Sen. Rachel Ventura (D-Joliet), and lawmakers voted 33–20 to pass the legislation, a recent Marijuana Moment report said. Supporters argued that the bill would protect residents’ rights against unreasonable searches.
“People—especially people of color—are unnecessarily pulled over far too often,” Ventura said in a statement, quoted by Marijuana Moment. “The odor of cannabis alone shouldn’t be one of those reasons. Cannabis is legal in Illinois and it’s a pungent scent that can stick to clothes for extended periods of time.”
Senate Democrats affirmed the push for the bill stemmed from a Will County court case in which a defendant was pulled over and arrested after the officer detected “a strong odor of burnt cannabis emanating from the vehicle,” which the defendant later clamed was due to someone having smoked cannabis in the car “a long time ago.”
Marijuana Moment pointed out that the bill would not alter the state’s laws concerning impaired driving, meaning the act of operating a motor vehicle under the influence of marijuana would remain a criminal offense. The bill states that “if a motor vehicle is driven or occupied by an individual 21 years of age or over, the odor of burnt or raw cannabis in a motor vehicle by itself shall not constitute probable cause for the search of the motor vehicle, vehicle operator, or passengers in the vehicle.”
But Niemerg noted that the legislation would make it more difficult for law enforcement personnel to do their jobs.
“I cannot support a measure that is going to make it harder for law enforcement to do their job,” he told the Times. “This legislation is only going to empower defense attorneys to render evidence from searched vehicles inadmissible in court, which is not something I can support.
“This legislation will make it harder for police officers to do their job. They know every time they search a vehicle that also happens to smell like marijuana, the contraband they find might not be admitted as evidence in court. Their actions will come under intense scrutiny as a result of this legislation. This bill will hurt not help law enforcement.”
The bill is now set to be considered by the Illinois House of Representatives.
