State v. Turner, 48 N.E.3d 981

Officer observed Turner following another car about one car-length at the 35 mph speed limit; undercover officer relayed this to a patrol officer who stopped Turner as he turned into his driveway.
When officers approached with the driver’s door open, they smelled raw marijuana; a records check showed Turner had a prior cultivation conviction.
Vehicle search revealed a small bag of raw marijuana in the console, three live marijuana starter plants in an unsealed box in the back seat, and hydroponic cultivation equipment.
Officers went to Turner’s house; upon the girlfriend opening the door an officer smelled raw marijuana and saw plastic bags associated with packaging; officers performed a protective sweep and observed marijuana growing in plain view.
Approximately one hour later a search warrant was obtained (affidavit recited the traffic stop, odor from the car, plants in the car, odor from the house, and Turner’s prior cultivation conviction); a warrant search yielded firearms, seeds, live plants, paraphernalia, processed marijuana, scales, cash, and a phone.
Turner moved to suppress; the trial court credited officer testimony, denied suppression; Turner pled no contest and appealed the denial of the suppression motion.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Whether traffic stop was supported by reasonable suspicion	Officer observed unsafe following (insufficient space) — valid traffic offense stop	Stop was unreasonable and tainted subsequent searches	Stop was supported by reasonable, articulable suspicion; stop valid
Whether odor of raw marijuana justified vehicle search	Odor provided probable cause to search car	Odor insufficient or not credibly established	Trial court credited odor; vehicle search was proper
Whether affidavit supported probable cause for home search	Plants in car + Turner drove them home + prior cultivation conviction gave fair probability of evidence at home	Affidavit omitted some vehicle findings and protective sweep observations; insufficient nexus to home	Affidavit provided sufficient nexus and probable cause for warrant
Whether evidence should be suppressed despite potential infirmities	State relied on valid stop, odor, and warrant	Turner argued stop and/or warrant defects required suppression	Court affirmed denial of suppression; conviction/sentence affirmed

Terry v. Ohio, 392 U.S. 1 (1968) (Terry stop/limited detention standard)
Ornelas v. United States, 517 U.S. 690 (1996) (de novo review of Fourth Amendment legal questions mixed with factual findings)
State v. Burnside, 100 Ohio St.3d 152 (2003) (trial court as factfinder on suppression; appellate deference to factual findings)
Dayton v. Erickson, 76 Ohio St.3d 3 (1996) (traffic stops permissible on reasonable articulable suspicion of traffic offense)
State v. Mays, 119 Ohio St.3d 406 (2008) (validity of stops prompted by reasonable and articulable suspicion)