Columbus OVI/DUI Attorney Blog
When a police officer stops a motorist, the officer may smell the odor of burned marijuana coming from inside the motorist’s vehicle. There was a time in Ohio when that odor alone would permit the officer to detain the driver and search the vehicle. That was before recreational marijuana was legalized. Now that recreational marijuana use is legal, the odor of burned marijuana, by itself, does not justify seizing the driver or searching the vehicle. This change has implications for DUI cases (called ‘OVI’ in Ohio) involving suspected marijuana intoxication.
The Odor of Marijuana and Ohio DUI/OVI Cases
As of today, recreational marijuana use is legal in Ohio. What is not legal is operating a vehicle under the influence of marijuana. Ohio has five laws related to cannabis and cars, and those laws remain unaffected by Ohio’s legalization of recreational marijuana.