Officer smells pot through patrol car vent, arrests driver in front of him

A Rock Hill man was cited for marijuana possession after a patrol officer first smelled the marijuana from his patrol car through the air vents, then pulled alongside the man’s car and saw the man smoking marijuana, according to a police report.

In the incident Tuesday, the Rock Hill Police Department officer was on Dave Lyle Boulevard heading away from downtown when he “could smell the odor of marijuana” from a Jeep directly in front of him, the report states. The officer turned his air conditioning up to high and could still smell the pot the report states.

The officer then pulled up next to the Jeep and saw the man inside “actively smoking a small brown marijuana cigarette,” the report states.

The officer made a traffic stop and the driver, Andrew Griesert, 24, told the officer he had been smoking marijuana and dropped the “blunt” on the floorboard when he saw the police car, according to the report.

The officer asked Griesert if there was more marijuana in the vehicle and he gave consent to search the Jeep. Inside the glove box police found 6.23 grams of marijuana, police said.

Griesert, who according to online court records was charged in March for unlawful carrying of a pistol that remains pending, was cited for possession of marijuana first offense and released, the report states.

This story was originally published July 15, 2016 at 7:30 AM with the headline "Officer smells pot through patrol car vent, arrests driver in front of him."