Cocaine is a drug that most people know. It tends to be easy to find on the streets, and it's something that comes into the United States frequently from other places. It's not very often that you hear about a major drug bust involving this drug, but it does happen from time to time.
In Connecticut, cops got a surprise when they caught a 27-year-old man with 80 baggies of crack cocaine. He allegedly also possessed a quantity of heroin that was not described. The Branford Police reported seizing $2,600 or more from the man during the arrest.
The officers stopped the man, who also had suboxone pills and marijuana, while he was on Interstate 95 and exiting on the 55 southbound ramp. The officers stated that the man had been swerving on East Main Street and that there was an odor of marijuana inside the vehicle.
Cases like this draw a few concerns. When someone is stopped because of swerving or poor driving techniques, the first question is if the officer had probable cause to stop them. If so, the next thing to ask is if the officer had a reason to examine the person's vehicle and property. Without an odor, as mentioned above, there may be no real indicators of drugs in a vehicle. Officers cannot search a vehicle without a warrant unless there is something in plain view (or potentially that they can smell) that would give them cause to search the vehicle at that time and without a warrant. This is something to discuss if you're stopped and have your vehicle searched.
