In the event a driver is pulled over, even due to a minor traffic violation, this may give the officer the opportunity to discover more serious circumstances, such as a driver being under the influence. As is a fairly common occurrence, a driver is pulled over for a minor traffic violation but when the police officer comes to the driver’s window they smell marijuana or perhaps alcohol. At that point, the officer has the requisite probable cause to search the vehicle. Suddenly something as seemingly minor as rolling through a stop sign has evolved into something far more serious.
