If the "tree" (the source) is tainted by illegality, all "fruit" (the evidence) growing from it is typically suppressed and cannot be used against a defendant. 2. Legal Origins
The doctrine uses a simple biological analogy to protect constitutional rights: Fruits from a Poisonous Tree
Any secondary or "derivative" evidence discovered as a direct result of that initial illegal action. If the "tree" (the source) is tainted by
The principle is an extension of the , which bars direct evidence obtained through Fourth Amendment violations. The principle is an extension of the ,
Justice Felix Frankfurter coined the specific phrase "fruit of the poisonous tree" in the 1939 case Nardone v. United States .
The evidence was also discovered through a separate, legal source completely unrelated to the illegal action.
The Supreme Court first established the principle in Silverthorne Lumber Co. v. United States (1920).