Mangione’s lawyer, Thomas Dickey, has alleged that during police questioning, his client was provided with food as a tactic to extract DNA samples from him. Dickey has argued that the DNA samples obtained in this manner are inadmissible as they were acquired through illegal means, referring to them as “poisonous fruits.” According to Dickey, law enforcement officers approached Mangione on December 9, five days post the murder of Thompson, without a valid legal basis, relying solely on a hunch.