The Ohio Supreme Court said yes in State v. Moore, 90 Ohio St.3d 47, 2000-Ohio-10. But the Ohio Supreme Court said that the officer has to be "a person qualified to recognize the odor." The Ohio Supreme Court said an officer is qualified if he is "trained and experienced in the detection of marijuana." If he is, the search is reasonable under the Fourth Amendment to the United States Constitution and Section 14, Article I of the Ohio Constitution.
This week, Ohio's Fifth District Court of Appeals said a loaded gun found in a car should have been suppressed where an officer searched the car only because he claimed he smelled marijuana. State v. Birdsong, 2009-Ohio-1859. While the officer testified at the suppression hearing that there was a strong distinct odor of burnt marijuana, he did not testify about any training or experience he had in detecting marijuana. It is unclear from the Court's opinion whether he lacked such training or if the prosecutor just failed to ask. But the officer never found any drugs or drug paraphernalia.
