Johnson v. Mullen’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

16 state decisions

Most-quoted passages

The sentences later courts lift from this opinion, ranked by how many decisions quote each — the parts of the opinion doing the work. These counts are smaller than the citation total above because most of the 18 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.

1. ““We do not believe that the sentencing justice’s further admonition that the charge of possession of burglar tools carried a 10-year maximum sentence would have contributed to Johnson’s better understanding of the penal consequences of his plea or in any way affected the knowing entry of the plea. Johnson was told that in pleading nolo contendere to all of the charges the court could sentence him to life imprisonment. Nevertheless, he stood before the court with his attorney, stated that he understood the penalty, and still wished to plead nolo. The possibility that knowledge of the punishment for the burglar-tools offense prevented him from understandingly evaluating the choice to plead or proceed to trial strikes us as being highly improbable. In fact, nowhere in his petition for postconviction relief or in his supporting affidavit does Johnson suggest that had he known of the penalty for this particular offense, he would not have entered his plea. We, therefore, find that the sentencing justice fulfilled his duty to make Johnson aware of the penal consequences of his plea.” Id. at 709 , 390 A.2d at 913 .”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage
   e.g. State v. Williams