Which of the following is a government defense to tainted evidence?

The concept of independent sources serves as a vital government defense against the challenge of tainted evidence. When evidence is obtained through illegal means, the government can sometimes still use it if it can demonstrate that the evidence would have been discovered independently from the illegal action. This means that if law enforcement has an alternative lawful way to acquire the same information or evidence, then the evidence collected in a manner that violated the individual's rights may still be admissible in court. The rationale behind this is rooted in the belief that excluding all evidence simply because part of it was tainted would impede the judicial process, provided that the uncontested evidence would have been found anyway.

Other options, while relevant to search and seizure or evidence rules, do not serve as specific defenses to the issue of tainted evidence in the same manner that independent sources do. Understanding this principle is essential for grasping how evidence can be evaluated in legal contexts despite potential violations of rights.