Impact of 4th Amendment Violations

Question 1

Define the exclusionary rule.

Answer 1

Evidence**, whether physical or testimonial, that is **obtained in violation of a federal statutory or constitutional provision** is **inadmissible in court against the individual whose rights were violated.

Question 2

Identify the 4th Amendment’s limits on the exclusionary rule.

Answer 2

Unconstitutionally obtained evidence** is **excluded** from the **prosecutor’s case-in-chief only

• may be introduced to impeach the defendant’s testimony on cross

Failure to comply** with the “**knock and announce**” rule does **not require suppression of evidence that is subsequently discovered

Erroneous police conduct must be deliberate, reckless, or grossly negligent to trigger the exclusionary rule

• Due Process restriction
• sliding scale of “reasonableness” balancing society’s need against magnitude of the intrusion

Exclusionary rule does not apply to evidence erroneously obtained** when **executing a search warrant**, provided the officer’s **mistake** was **reasonable

Question 3

What is the fruit of the poisonous tree doctrine?

Answer 3

Direct evidence–evidence that has been directly linked to constitutional violation

derivative evidence

• physcial and testimonial** that is **obtained by exploiting prior unconstitutional conduct
• fruit of the poisonous tree
• is inadmissible in the prosecutor’s case in chief

Question 4

How might fruit of the poisonous tree evidence nevertheless be still admissible?

Answer 4

Prosecutors must show a break in the causal link between the original illegality and the criminal evidence later discovered

• independent source–source for discovery and seizure of the evidence that is distinct from the original illegality
• inevitable discovery–applies where the evidence would necessarily have been discovered through lawful means
• attenuation–passage of time and intervening events purge the taint of the original illegality and restore the defendant’s free will