KS: Odor of alcohol in a vehicle is not enough to justify a search

The odor of alcohol in a vehicle is not enough to justify a search. Here, it was spilled on the interior, and a search produced drugs. State v. Stevenson, 2014 Kan. LEXIS 117 (March 28, 2014), revg 46 Kan. App. 2d 474, 262 P.3d 689 (2011):

After stopping Robert Stevenson’s sport utility vehicle based upon a turn signal violation, law enforcement officers searched the vehicle because they observed a very strong odor of alcohol emanating from inside the vehicle after Stevenson, the lone occupant, had exited. The search led to the discovery of methamphetamine and the subsequent prosecution of Stevenson for possessing that drug, in violation of K.S.A. 2008 Supp. 65-4160. Stevenson sought to suppress the fruits of the warrantless search, but the district court held that the odor of alcohol inside the vehicle was sufficient to establish probable cause to search the vehicle for an open container of alcohol. In a split decision, a panel of the Court of Appeals affirmed that holding. State v. Stevenson, 46 Kan. App. 2d 474, 262 P.3d 689 (2011) (Buser, J., dissenting). This court accepted review of the Court of Appeals’ decision; our jurisdiction is pursuant to K.S.A. 20-3018(b) and K.S.A. 22-3602(e). Based upon the totality of circumstances in this particular case, we determine that the search was unlawful.