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Times Leader P.M. Update: Wednesday, Feb. 17

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A Shavertown man’s sentence by a Luzerne County judge for possessing marijuana and paraphernalia found during a traffic stop in Hughestown was vacated by a state appellate court Wednesday.

The ruling by the state Superior Court that favors Richard Shaw, 37, follows a recent opinion by the state’s highest court, the Supreme Court, which found warrantless searches of vehicles solely based on an odor of marijuana to be unlawful.

A Luzerne County jury in June 2019 convicted Shaw of possession of a controlled substance and possession of drug paraphernalia following a trial before Judge Joseph Sklarosky Jr. Shaw was acquitted of the most serious charge, possession with intent to deliver a controlled substance.

Sklarosky in September 2019 sentenced Shaw to 18 months probation.

Prior to trial, Sklarosky denied to suppress the marijuana as Shaw claimed the narcotic was found during what he believed was an illegal search of his vehicle by Hughestown police.

Shaw appealed his conviction to the Superior Court.

While it was legal for police officers to conduct warrantless searches of vehicles based on an odor of marijuana, the state Supreme Court in the Dec. 22, 2020, ruling <em>Commonwealth v. Alexander</em> found vehicle searches based solely on an odor of marijuana are illegal.

The Supreme Court ruled an odor of marijuana may rise to the level of probable cause as marijuana remains illegal generally, but the <em>odor of marijuana alone</em> does not imply suspicion of criminal activity.

The Superior Court determined Hughestown police conducted a lawful traffic stop when the officer noticed license plate lights to be out on a vehicle driven by Shaw on Oct. 28, 2017. The officer then detected an odor of marijuana coming from the vehicle and proceeded to search the car without Shaw’s consent.

In following the Supreme Court’s recent ruling, a three-member panel of the Superior Court vacated Shaw’s sentence and sent the criminal case back to Luzerne County for further proceedings.

Shavertown man’s drug sentence vacated by appellate court