- fruit of the poisonous tree
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fruit of the poisonous tree1: a doctrine of evidence: evidence that is derived from or gathered during an illegal action (as an unlawful search) cannot be admitted into court2: evidence that is inadmissible under an evidentiary exclusionary rule because it was derived from or gathered during an illegal action see also wong sun v. u.s. in the important cases section compare independent source, inevitable discovery, plain view
Merriam-Webster’s Dictionary of Law. Merriam-Webster. 1996.
- fruit of the poisonous tree
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In criminal law, the doctrine that evidence discovered through unconstitutional means (such as a forced confession or illegal search and seizure), may not be used as evidence against a criminal defendant. For example, if a suspect is arrested but is not read the Miranda rights, then tells the police the location of stolen property, and the police then find the stolen property as a result of the interrogation, the stolen property is inadmissible because it was acquired through an unconstitutional interrogation.Category: Criminal LawCategory: Small Claims Court & Lawsuits
Nolo’s Plain-English Law Dictionary. Gerald N. Hill, Kathleen Thompson Hill. 2009.
- fruit of the poisonous tree
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n. Constitutional law: otherwise competent evidence obtained from an illegal search, which will not be admitted at trial because of the illegality of the manner in which it was obtained.
Webster's New World Law Dictionary. Susan Ellis Wild. 2000.
- fruit of the poisonous tree
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The principle that prohibits the use of secondary evidence in trial that was culled directly from primary evidence derived from an illegal search and seizure.
Dictionary from West's Encyclopedia of American Law. 2005.
- fruit of the poisonous tree
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The principle that prohibits the use of secondary evidence in trial that was culled directly from primary evidence derived from an illegal search and seizure.
Short Dictionary of (mostly American) Legal Terms and Abbreviations.
- fruit of the poisonous tree
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n.in criminal law, the doctrine that evidence discovered due to information found through illegal search or other unconstitutional means (such as a forced confession) may not be introduced by a prosecutor. The theory is that the tree (original illegal evidence) is poisoned and thus taints what grows from it. For example, as part of a coerced admission made without giving a prime suspect the so-called "Miranda warnings" (statement of rights, including the right to remain silent and what he/she says will be used against them), the suspect tells the police the location of stolen property. Since the admission cannot be introduced as evidence in trial, neither can the stolen property.See also: Miranda warning
Law dictionary. EdwART. 2013.
