Exclusionary Rule (4th Am)
What does "Exclusionary Rule (4th Am)" mean in law?
The exclusionary rule, established in Weeks v. United States (1914) for federal courts and extended to state courts in Mapp v. Ohio (1961), prohibits the use of evidence obtained in violation of the Fourth Amendment in the prosecution's case-in-chief. The rule also encompasses the 'fruit of the poisonous tree' doctrine (Wong Sun v. United States, 1963), which excludes not only the primary evidence obtained directly from the illegal search but also all derivative evidence obtained as a result of the initial violation. The rule's primary purpose is to deter police misconduct by removing the incentive to violate constitutional rights. Important limitations include the attenuation doctrine, independent source doctrine, and inevitable discovery exception, as well as the rule's inapplicability at grand jury proceedings, civil proceedings, and certain other contexts.
Definition
The exclusionary rule, established in Weeks v. United States (1914) for federal courts and extended to state courts in Mapp v. Ohio (1961), prohibits the use of evidence obtained in violation of the Fourth Amendment in the prosecution's case-in-chief. The rule also encompasses the 'fruit of the poisonous tree' doctrine (Wong Sun v. United States, 1963), which excludes not only the primary evidence obtained directly from the illegal search but also all derivative evidence obtained as a result of the initial violation. The rule's primary purpose is to deter police misconduct by removing the incentive to violate constitutional rights. Important limitations include the attenuation doctrine, independent source doctrine, and inevitable discovery exception, as well as the rule's inapplicability at grand jury proceedings, civil proceedings, and certain other contexts.
Example
After officers conducted a warrantless search of a home without any applicable exception, the drugs found inside were suppressed under the exclusionary rule, and the confession the defendant later gave based on being confronted with those drugs was also suppressed as fruit of the poisonous tree.