3 things happening in NC: Hemp is legal. But NC courts say you can be searched for smelling like it.

Cardinal & Pine’s “3 things” is a weekly look at the news, events, and stories that are driving conversation around North Carolina. This week, a big ruling on hemp and police searches, a comic-con fantasyland in Raleigh, and the “Superman” effect on dog adoptions.

Here’s a curious bit of legal tedium that really matters:

It’s well known that if police officers smell marijuana on you, they can use that to justify a search. But what if you have hemp, which looks and smells just like marijuana and, by the way, isn’t illegal? 

Members of NC’s ultra-conservative Court of Appeals just gave police permission to all but ignore the distinction to search you. Which, apparently, they had been doing anyway. 

Let’s unpack this in today’s “3 things happening.” Also, keep reading for a check-in on a huge comic-con and fantasy party in Raleigh, and speaking of comics, how dog adoptions are trending after the premiere of the new Superman movie.

For past editions of “3 things” as chosen by Cardinal & Pine senior editor Billy Ball, then click here.  

Smells like a Fourth Amendment violation

NC is in an odd place when it comes to marijuana and hemp.

Marijuana, of course, isn’t legal here, making NC one of just a few states that have neither legalized it or decriminalized it, even though many Americans—regardless of race, ethnicity, and political affiliation—use it. 

(Cardinal & Pine readers, by the way, are of one mind on the matter. Also of note, Gov. Josh Stein, a supporter of marijuana legalization, has created a task force to study the issue this year.) 

In recent years, there has been some movement in the Republican-dominated state legislature to legalize medical marijuana, but bills doing that haven’t made it over the hump. 

Hemp, however, is legal. Hemp can look and smell identical to marijuana but doesn’t contain the same amount of THC, the psychoactive compound that can make you feel high.

The longstanding concern from some law enforcement was that they wouldn’t have justification to search people for marijuana because officers could be smelling legal hemp. 

However, as WRAL’s Will Doran reported this week, that hasn’t stopped police from searching people and judges don’t seem to mind it. The state Court of Appeals bolstered that position in July by saying the smell doesn’t matter.

Paging the NC Court of Appeals: The Fourth Amendment, which protects against “unreasonable searches and seizures,” would like a word with you.  

Amily McCool, a Raleigh lawyer specializing in marijuana cases, told WRAL that some of her clients have been racially profiled by police “who made dubious claims of smelling marijuana and then ended up arrested for something else entirely.” 

“People should be upset that they can be searched, without consent or a warrant, when there’s an equal chance they have a legal product,” McCool told WRAL. “The cops don’t care if they get it wrong,” she added. “They’ll just say ‘Well, let’s just let the courts figure it out.’”

 

View this post on Instagram

 

A post shared by Cardinal & Pine (@cardinalandpine)

It’s not nerdy if it’s cool now

An update for the jocks and the bullies, the nerds won. I can say “nerds” because I am one, having a closet filled with old Spider-man comics. 

GalaxyCon in Raleigh returns this week. It’s a four-day extravaganza for the fantasy-inclined. Look for comics, celebrities, artists, wrestlers, cosplayers and anyone else with a whimsical bone in their body. 

This year, look for big names like William Shatner, Andy Serkis, Susan Sarandon, Giancarlo Esposito, and surviving cast members from “Beverly Hills: 90210.” 

The con runs from July 24-27 at the Raleigh Convention Center. Check out tickets here. 

 

View this post on Instagram

 

A post shared by GalaxyCon Raleigh (@galaxyconraleigh)

It’s a bird, it’s a plane, it’s a … dog

If you haven’t seen the new “Superman” movie yet, it appears you’re in a small subset of Americans, given the box office ticket sales. 

But here’s a fun storyline to follow off of the return of Clark Kent and his undisguised alter ego: Searches for dog adoption centers have skyrocketed since the film premiered July 8. 

It makes sense. Superman’s dog, Krypto, steals a lot of scenes in the film. 

I fully endorse this movement. Dog adoption is one of the best, purely awesome things you can do right now, and it’s incredibly easy and enriching. 

Dogs are clinically proven to make us happier, and to ruin our carpets, but you win some, you lose some. 

Google an adoption center near you right now and you won’t regret it. 

 

View this post on Instagram

 

A post shared by Eric Booya E Serrano (@eric_booya_e_serrano)