Of The Lowest Imaginable Level Of Intelligence
BY Herschel Smith
3 years, 5 months ago
Via David Codrea, this ridiculous case.
The fact determination at issue in this case is one that necessarily must be determined by the Court based on its real world experience and common sense applied to the evidence. Officer Hiser cannot say whether the windows of his or Gray’s vehicles were rolled down and Gray points out persuasively.
The Court agrees with Gray that it is incredible that Officer Hiser—who self-admittedly does not have a heightened olfactory system—could smell the scent of two resealable sandwich sized plastic baggies of unburnt marijuana coming from a moving vehicle when patrolling in his cruiser. This occurrence is not only contrary to any common experiences, but is “implausible” and seemingly “contrary to the laws of nature.” … While the Seventh Circuit has held that “the scent of burning marijuana alone, if detected,” can justify a Terry stop, …, decades of appellate cases discussing an officer smelling raw marijuana entailed physical characteristics—like proximity to, and amount of, marijuana. …
I was going to remark that law enforcement apparently seeks the lowest common denominator as new hires. The lower the IQ, the better the candidate.
However, sadly, the author points out the following. “What Chief Judge Tanya Walton Pratt may not have realized, being a federal judge and hence breathing the rarified air of clean courthouses rather than being forced to smell the unpleasant odor of sweaty bodies and filthy floors, is that claims such as the one she found totally full of malarkey are routine in state courts, where most pot cases go and most suppression motions are denied.”
So the problem runs deep into the judiciary as well. Does anyone with two brain cells left trust the American system of justice? As for that matter, does anyone really trust a “jury of their peers” to come to the right conclusion?
On July 15, 2021 at 8:29 am, ragman said:
To answer your questions Captain, NO and NO. Absolutely no faith in anything involving government.
On July 15, 2021 at 9:48 am, Fred said:
It’s clear that in the war on drugs, the drugs won. I propose immediate surrender AND the re-introduction of the fact of sin to parenting and childhood education.
On July 15, 2021 at 9:56 pm, Heywood said:
@ragman You beat me to it. Pithy!
On July 19, 2021 at 10:29 am, Michael (from Utah) said:
Likewise, ragman has it correct and I agree with him 100%