Probable Cause and Criminal Procedure

Week 3 - Probable Cause Article Summary
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Week 3 - Probable Cause Article Summary
Probable cause is an essential requirement for searches and seizures and arrest with or without warrants. For situations that require a mandatory warrant, a judge must determine the probable cause before issuing a warrant. However, when a warrant is not needed, an officer must refer to probable cause before searching a property or arresting a suspect. Sometimes, a probable cause can be gained from the victims' reports, police bulletins, witnesses, and criminal informants. In other words, probable cause serves as an eligibility criterion for arresting because it shows the possibility that a suspect committed the said offense. But during the search, probable cause tells whether the property to be seized is connected with illegal activities and if they are accessible on the premise that investigators need to search. This is because some courts may treat the requirement of a probable cause differently. However, the treatment depends on the behavior of the law enforcement. 
Last year, Maryland’s highest court issued a unanimous ruling that restricts the officer’s ability to search and arrest individuals based on marijuana smell alone. The court held, ‘‘the marijuana smell alone does not qualify to be probable cause that allows law enforcement officers to arrest and conduct a warrantless search’’ (Fenton, 2020). This ruling was built on a previous verdict by the same court that it is legal for a law enforcement officer to search and arrest someone with below ten grams of marijuana, which is within the range decriminalized. In that case, the court argued that the police was aware that the amount of marijuana did not meet the criminal threshold and, therefore, ought not to have searched for more and make an arrest (Fenton, 2020). The present ruling further bars the police from relying on the smell of marijuana as the probable cause. Any arrest or search made on this basis infringes the privacy right of a person and violates the Fourth Amendment that protects all citizens from unnecessary search.
The same ruling applied to the search of a person’s vehicle on privacy grounds. The court held, ‘‘there is a heightened privacy expectation enjoyed by everyone. Arresting and searching an individual without a warrant and based entirely on marijuana smell on the body or breathe of that person is unreasonable and violates the fundamental privacy expectation’’ (Fenton, 2020). In this ruling, the court ordered the police not to attend a vehicle search unless they have probable cause to believe that the vehicle contains crime evidence. This ruling comes after complaints that officers regularly claim to smell bhang. Truth be told, police testimony about odors from cars has become so ubiquitous. They have taken advantage of the mere odor smell of marijuana to send their targets to prison (Fenton, 2020). This subject needs a heightened scrutiny level if it is to supply the grounds for the search.
According to the Baltimore Sun, the ruling involved a case of Rasher...