Fruit of the poisonous tree

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Fruit of the poisonous tree is a legal term in the United States used to describe evidence gathered with the aid of information obtained illegally. The logic of the terminology is that if the source of the evidence (the "tree") is tainted, then anything gained from it (the "fruit") would be likewise.

Such evidence is not generally admissible in court. For example, if a police officer conducts an unconstitutional search of a home, finds an address book, and uses that address book to locate a witness, the witness would not be allowed to testify because her testimony would be a "fruit" of the unconstitutional search.

The doctrine is an extension of the exclusionary rule, which, subject to some exceptions, prevents evidence obtained in violation of the Fourth Amendment from being admitted in a criminal trial. Like the exclusionary rule, the fruit-of-the-poisonous-tree doctrine is intended to deter police from using illegal means to obtain evidence.

The doctrine is subject to three main exceptions. The tainted evidence will be admissible if (1) it was discovered in part as a result of an independent, untainted source; (2) it would inevitably have been discovered despite the tainted source; or (3) the chain of causation between the illegal action and the tainted evidence is too attenuated.

The Fruit of the Poisonous Tree doctrine stems from the case of Silverthorne Lumber Co. v. United States.

[edit] Alternate usage

Fruit of the Poisonous tree can also refer to the inability to justify past bad acts by later committing only good acts.^{[citation needed]} A murderer cannot be redeemed in jail without repenting the original crime; an illegal alien is not considered a legal immigrant just because of a desire to work in this country legally.^{[citation needed]}