Silverthorne v. United States
Supreme Court of the United States
251 U.S. 385 (1920)
Relevant factsFree
Federal agents investigating Silverthorne (defendant) for tax evasion illegally seized his tax books and made copies before returning the originals under the exclusionary rule. The government then subpoenaed Silverthorne to produce the original documents at trial, relying on knowledge gained from the copies.
IssueFree
Whether copies made from illegally seized records must be excluded under the exclusionary rule.