State v. Hansen

In State v. Hansen, 117 Ariz. 496, 497, 573 P.2d 896, 897 (App. 1977), an officer came upon two people sitting next to one another on a park bench, noticed that one person was smoking what appeared to be a marijuana cigarette, and upon approach detected the odor of marijuana. 117 Ariz. at 497, 573 P.2d at 897. The officer arrested the smoker and Hansen. See id. His subsequent search of both individuals revealed a baggie of marijuana on Hansen. See id. Hansen moved to suppress the marijuana on the basis that the police officer had no probable cause to believe that he had participated in the possession or use of the marijuana cigarette. See id. The Court held that absent evidence of "joint activity" or "joint participation," the act of sitting on a park bench with another person who was smoking marijuana is insufficient to give rise to probable cause to arrest. Id. at 498, 573 P.2d at 898.