Documents filed as part of a lawsuit seeking reform reveal that Chicago Police intend to update their city’s law enforcement guidelines to discourage officers searching cars based on the mere smell of unburned, raw marijuana.
The revised policy comes in the face of ongoing efforts to respond to a state Supreme Court ruling late last year that said police are justified in searching a vehicle if they smell raw marijuana. According to the Justices, the smell is a sign that it is almost certain the marijuana isn’t sealed in an odorproof container as per law.
Several lawmakers and activists say this decision is inconsistent with another high court ruling a few weeks earlier, which determined that the smell was not a factor in the case. Burnt Cannabis The amount of money needed to buy the necessary number of cars is insufficient Cause to search a car. This opinion stated that “there are now many situations in which cannabis may be legally used or possessed and that the smell that results from this legal use and possess is not indicative that a crime has been committed.”
Chicago Police Department has amended its policy to reflect the new legal environment. It also removed the reference to unburnt Cannabis ruling. People v. Molina, from an agency guidance document about police encounters and due process rights.
ACLU of Illinois, one of the parties to a federal case seeking reform of Chicago PD said that in a filing in court, it “applauds”, the change which they called an “improvement” on previous guidance. The agreement prohibits officers from conducting an investigative stop or search based on only an officer’s smelling marijuana/cannabis without other concrete and specific facts of criminal conduct.
The filing for a coalition in the consent order case states that “additionally, CPD officers have now admitted they cannot conduct vehicle search based upon the smell of raw cannabis until and unless they are properly trained to differentiate between the odors from raw and burned cannabis.”
The recent changes have cleared up confusion, where officers might have thought they had the right to search pedestrians and drivers based solely on the smell of cannabis, Alexandra K. Block of ACLU-IL’s Criminal Legal System and Policing Project told MEDCAN24 in an email. She added that the group and the other parties involved in the suit are “pleased” with the compromise reached.
Chicago PD did not reply to comments sent by this week.
Chicago PD said that the revised document would go into effect in this year. ACLU-IL’s Block did not know when exactly the changes to policy would take effect, but noted that current policy does not mention marijuana at all.
Block writes: “In the interim, the policy that governs is the 2017 version (which doesn’t mention cannabis in any way, as it was adopted prior to the legalization of cannabis for personal consumption in Illinois).”
In a public draft version from last December, the document mentions marijuana in two different places. It is mentioned in both a section about “Plain Smell Doctrine”, vehicle searches and a second one on “prohibitions”, around investigative stops or searches.
“The second reference” means: Molina The case involved an “exception” from a prohibition against “conducting a stop or search on a person solely because an officer smelled cannabis/marijuana, without other facts specific to criminal activity.”
In the exhibit for the Consent Decree case, revised language from May, this year removes “exception” references to Molina.
This document contains the following first reference:
“In People v. Molina “In 2024, the Supreme Court of the State of Illinois ruled that the mere odor of burnt cannabis emanating from a motor vehicle on an Illinois road is sufficient for police officers to have probable cause, if they are experienced and trained in identifying the difference between raw and burned cannabis.”
The advocates prefer a more comprehensive legislative solution. ACLU-IL is pushing for changes to the state laws that will eliminate any requirement of cannabis being packaged in car odor-proof containers.
Block explained: “If this change were to be made, then it would overrule.” People v. Molina And prohibit officers from searching vehicles based only on the smell of raw cannabis.”
She added, “We have also suggested that CPD change its policy to prohibit officers from requesting consent for car searches based solely on the smell of marijuana.”
WTTW, a local PBS affiliate, was first to broadcast the new policy.
Last month, a House committee in Illinois had an initial hearing on a Senate-passed bill that would clarify that police may not stop or detain drivers, or search their vehicles, based solely on the smell of cannabis.
But the House sponsor of the proposal—which would further remove a requirement that marijuana be transported in odor-proof containers—said at the time that he didn’t think it was yet ready to become law, adding that he’d like to see it held on the House floor while authors iron out concerns raised by law enforcement.
It has now been sent to the House Rules Committee, but it still isn’t moving.
—
MEDCAN24 has been tracking the hundreds of bills relating to cannabis, psychedelics or drug policies that have passed through state legislatures as well as Congress in this past year. Patreon members who pledge at least $25/month gain access to interactive maps, charts, and hearing schedules so that they do not miss anything.
Discover more about the marijuana bills tracker. Become a patron on Patreon for access.
—
The use of marijuana smell as probable reason for stopping and searching vehicles is criticized by those who believe that the police unfairly apply drug laws to Black Americans and people of other races. Allowing stops on the basis of the claimed scent of cannabis may increase the enforcement bias.
Other states have also passed laws that allow police to search for cannabis based on the scent. Maryland’s Gov. Wes Moore, a Democrat from Maryland, allowed the passage of a law prohibiting police officers from conducting searches solely based on the smell or presence of marijuana. GOP lawmakers unsuccessfully attempted to reverse that policy.
The Minnesota Supreme Court also ruled last year that police can’t use the smell of cannabis alone to justify vehicle searches—a ruling that has since been codified by the legislature and signed into law by Gov. Tim Walz (D).
In New York, the governor signed a budget bill last month. Kathy Hochul (D) signed a budget bill into law that notably does not include a controversial marijuana provision she proposed that would have allowed police to use the smell of marijuana as probable cause that a driver is impaired and then force them to take a drug test.
Amendments by lawmakers removed the provision, which a coalition of 60 reform groups had argued in a letter to Hochul and top lawmakers would “repeat some of the worst harms of the War on Drugs” and allow law enforcement to “restart unconstitutional racial profiling of drivers.”
Earlier this year in Illinois, Gov. J.B. Pritzker (D) touted the state’s record-setting $2 billion in marijuana sales in 2024, applauding the “thriving” industry while criticizing the “proliferation of the unregulated intoxicating hemp market.”
He said: “The figures are clear. Five years after Illinois legalized cannabis for adult use, we see the impact on our economy of a flourishing cannabis industry.”
The governor stated that while he is “pleased” with Illinois’ continued cannabis revenue and sales, the market has been undermined by unregulated hemp.
He said that “licensed cannabis businesses must comply with state laws, pay substantial taxes and go through rigorous testing of their products.” This unchecked cannabis market undercuts the legal industry and puts consumers in danger by flooding it with products that are not tested or potentially dangerous.
Pritzker has been vocal about his concerns over the unregulated hemp market, and he said in January that he was “tremendously disappointed” that a bill to impose restrictions on the sale of intoxicating hemp products that he advocated for stalled out in the legislature.
Separately, a report from the state Cannabis Regulation Oversight Office that was released late last year detailed how 2024 saw the single-largest expansion of stores since Illinois began opening medical marijuana dispensaries, with 82 new retailers opening for business—many of which are owned by social equity licensees.
“As additional dispensaries open their doors, that increased competition leads to increased availability of product and better prices for consumers—just as we anticipated,” Cannabis Regulation Oversight Officer Erin Johnson said on Thursday. We look forward to Illinois’ continued success in the cannabis industry. This will lead to more economic development, public awareness and support of responsible consumption.
Last summer, officials also announced the award of $35 million in grants to 88 local organizations, using funds generated from taxes on adult-use marijuana sales to support community reinvestment efforts. Since launching the program, Illinois has awarded over $244 million in marijuana revenue-funded grants to that end.
Governor Rauner has often made jokes about Illinois benefitting from lack of access to legal cannabis in neighboring states. Going back to his State of the State address in 2020, he said out-of-state dollars will end up coming to Illinois and paying taxes for cannabis products that bolster the state’s coffers.
State senators last year also took up a bill that would have legalized psilocybin and allowed regulated access through service centers, where adults could use the drug in a supervised setting.
Please read the updated May 2025 Chicago Police Department Due Process Policy Guidance below.
Rand Paul Files a Bill to Triple Federal THC for Hemp Limit as the House Pursues a Crackdown on Consumable Cannabinoids
MEDCAN24 would not be possible without the support of readers. Consider a Patreon subscription if our marijuana advocacy journalism is what you use to keep informed.
