“The Rental Car Trap”: Why Driving Like a Jerk With a Trunk Full of Weed Is a Bad Idea

By: John Guidry

Please permit me to break off a piece of wisdom to anyone driving around Central Florida with drugs in their car: Try not to drive like a jerk. That’s right. I’ve defended a zillion drug cases in Orlando that started with a simple traffic citation.

• The Question: Why blow through a stop sign with a trunk load of contraband? Why drag race when you have several hundred illegal pills in your pocket?
• The Answer: As Timothy B. Schmit likes to sing, “I can’t tell you why.”

The Real-Life Example: The case of Williams v. State, 110 So. 3d 59 (Fla. 2d DCA 2013) perfectly illustrates the equation: Idiot Driving = Drug Charge.

Did the police charge you for drugs found in a car you were just riding in?

Proximity is not Possession. Call John today at (407) 423-1117.

The Case: Williams v. State (The Rental & The Black Bag)

Ms. Williams was speeding and driving recklessly in a rental car with two passengers.

• The Stop: Tampa police pulled her over. She became extremely nervous—so nervous they offered her an EMT.
• The Smell: Officers smelled marijuana. (Ah, that’s why you’re nervous).
• The Search: Inside a black bag in the car, they found a pound of fresh marijuana, crack cocaine, and digital scales.

The Charge: Just like that, a speeding ticket turned into Trafficking and Intent to Sell.

• The State’s Theory: She was the driver. She rented the car. She smelled the weed. Therefore, the drugs were hers.

The Defense: Constructive Possession 101 The Appeals Court threw out the conviction. Why? Because the State failed to prove Dominion and Control.

• The Law: When a vehicle is occupied by more than one person (Joint Occupancy), the State cannot just assume the driver owns everything. They need Independent Proof.
• The Evidence: There were no fingerprints on the bag. No one admitted the bag was hers.“Mere proximity to drugs… cannot ever prove dominion and control over them.”

The Court noted that assuming the driver owns every container in the car would be “Strict Liability,” which is unconstitutional.

The “Odor” Problem: Burnt vs. Fresh

In Williams, the smell gave them the right to search. Here is the three-tier breakdown of the “Odor” excuse:

1. Burnt Cannabis: Smelling something burnt is evidence of a completed crime (ashes), not a current one. Yet, judges often allow it to justify searching body cavities.
2. Fresh Marijuana: This suggests a continuing crime (possession). Police argue this gives them carte blanche to search everything.
3. “Nondenominational” Odor: When the cop can’t tell the difference but searches you anyway.

John’s 2026 Update: The Hemp Defense & Racial Reality

Note: In 2013, the smell of weed was a death knell. In 2026, it is a legal gray area.

1. The “Hemp Defense” (The New Williams Rule) In October 2025, the Florida Second DCA issued a landmark ruling (ironically also called Williams v. State) that changed everything.

• The 2026 Reality: Because Legal Hemp and Illegal Cannabis smell exactly the same, the Court ruled that the odor of marijuana ALONE is no longer probable cause for a search.
• The Impact: Police now need “Odor Plus”—smell plus signs of impairment, or smell plus a visible baggie. If they searched you solely on smell, we can now suppress the evidence.

2. Racial Disparities in “Pretextual Stops” While the law is evolving, the enforcement remains skewed. We must be honest about who gets pulled over for “driving like a jerk.”

• The Statistics: Recent data shows that Black drivers are 45% more likely to be stopped by police than White drivers. Even worse, once stopped, Black drivers are more than twice as likely to be searched or arrested.
• The Lesson: If you fit the demographic that is statistically targeted by “Pretextual Stops,” relying on the Williams defense is risky. The best defense is to give them zero reason to pull you over.

3. “Touch DNA” Replaces Fingerprints In 2013, Ms. Williams won because there were no fingerprints.

• The 2026 Danger: Today, police use Touch DNA. If Ms. Williams had touched the zipper of that black bag once, her skin cells would have convicted her. We now have to hire DNA experts to prove “secondary transfer” (that your DNA got there by accident).

Don’t Drive a Mobile Pharmacy

If you are renting a car, check under the seats before you drive off. If you are driving friends, know what they are carrying. You don’t want to be the one facing a 15-year sentence for a bag that wasn’t yours.

Call me at (407) 423-1117. Let’s fight the Constructive Possession.

About John Guidry II

John Guidry II is a seasoned criminal defense attorney and founder of the Law Firm of John P. Guidry II, P.A., located in downtown Orlando next to the Orange County Courthouse, where he has practiced for over 30 years. With more than three decades of experience defending clients throughout Central Florida since 1993, Guidry has successfully defended thousands of cases in Orange, Seminole, Osceola, Brevard, Lake, and Volusia counties. He has built a reputation for his strategic approach to criminal defense, focusing on pretrial motions and case dismissals rather than jury trials.

Guidry earned both his Juris Doctorate and Master of Business Administration from St. Louis University in 1993. He is a member of the Florida Bar and the Florida Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers. His practice encompasses the full spectrum of Florida state criminal charges, with a particular emphasis on achieving favorable outcomes through thorough pretrial preparation and motion practice.

Beyond the courtroom, Guidry is a prolific legal educator who has authored over 400 articles on criminal defense topics. He shares his legal expertise through his popular YouTube channel, Instagram, and TikTok accounts, where he has built a substantial following of people eager to learn about the law. His educational content breaks down complex legal concepts into accessible information for the general public.

When not practicing law, Guidry enjoys tennis and pickleball, and loves to travel. Drawing from his background as a former recording studio owner and music video producer in the Orlando area, he brings a creative perspective to his legal practice and continues to apply his passion for video production to his educational content.