C.S. is a twenty-six (26) year old woman with no prior criminal record.
While driving northbound on I-95 in St. Lucie county, a cop traveling in the opposite direction claimed he saw C.S. following the car directly in front of her “too closely.”
The Deputy made a U-turn, caught up with C.S. and pulled her over.
Upon approaching C.S.’s car, the cop claimed he ‘smelled the distinct odor of raw cannabis emanating from inside the vehicle.’ Using that reason to search the car, he ultimately located a trace amount of weed along with a ‘one-hitter’ pipe. NOTE: Both the pipe and the ‘shake’ were inside of plastic baggie, which was inside a sealed plastic container, which both were inside the closed center console of the vehicle.
C.S. was arrested and charged with possession of cannabis, a first degree misdemeanor per Ch. 893.13,(6)(a), Fla. Stat., and with possession of ‘narcotics paraphernalia,’ also a first degree misdemeanor in per Ch. 893.147, Fla. Stat. In sum, C.S. faced a maximum sentence of two (2) years in the county jail based upon the items recovered during the search of her car.
At the conclusion of vigorously contested Motion to Suppress, attorney Jay Kirschner persuaded the trial judge that the search was illegal, and the Court then suppressed all of the evidence of the items recovered in the search. CASE DISMISSED.
