People v. Strasburg

In People v. Strasburg (2007) 148 Cal.App.4th 1052, the court held that even where a defendant has a marijuana prescription, the detection of a marijuana odor coming from a vehicle constitutes probable cause to search that vehicle. (Strasburg, supra, 148 Cap.App.4th at p. 1059.) In Strasburg, "The operative issue was whether the officer had probable cause to search defendant's car at the moment he smelled the odor of marijuana , at the outset of his encounter with defendant . . . ." (Strasburg, supra, 148 Cal.App.4th at p. 1058.) The court found the officer "had probable cause to search defendant's car for marijuana after he smelled the odor of marijuana." (Id. at p. 1059.) The court did not hold that a visual detection of marijuana was necessary to establish probable cause. Rather, the officer's observation of a bag of marijuana in defendant's car only served to make certain what the officer had probable cause to suspect upon smelling marijuana--that there was contraband in the car. (Id. at p. 1059.)