State v. Jerousek’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

108 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 108 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.

1. “We do not agree with the defendant that the evidence of his prior bad acts was vague and uncertain. In child molestation cases, the defendant can be convicted on the uncorroborated testimony of the victim. The victim testified in detail regarding a previous incident when the defendant told her to hide in the closet because his wife had returned home. She also testified that she had ‘played games’ with him on five other occasions, always at his house and always during the day in his bedroom. On cross-examination, she indicated that she had played games with the defendant six or seven times and that each time this happened the defendant had molested her. Although the victim could not testify as to the exact dates on which these prior acts occurred, she was certain of their occurrence and certain that they had occurred earlier in the summer. It must be remembered that the victim was a young girl. As we stated in State v. Berry, 101 Ariz. 310, 314 , 419 P.2d 337, 341 (1966): ‘If we were to find a fatal variance under such circumstances it would seem to behoove one who chooses to sexually assault children at the risk of irreparable psychological and physical damage to his victim, to make sure that the child is sufficiently young to be incapable of effectively testifying as to specific dates in the year and minutes on the clock. We recognize, rather, that it is for the jury to determine the truth of the witnesses’ story * * *.’ In addition to the victim’s testimony, the defendant’s”

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

2. “The need for a psychiatric examination of a victim of a sex crime would generally arise “only if little or no corroboration supported the charge and if the defense raised the issue of the effect of the complaining witness’ mental or emotional condition upon her veracity.” (Emphasis added.) Ballard, 64 Cal.2d 159, 176 , 49 Cal.Rptr. 302, 313 , 410 P.2d 838, 849 . In the instant case, the victim’s testimony was corroborated not only by the defendant’s confession but by the testimony of several neighborhood children. (The competency of these children was not challenged.) It was, therefore, not an abuse of the trial court’s discretion to find a psychiatric examination of the victim unnecessary.”

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

3. “It has long been the law in Arizona that evaluating the competency of a witness is a matter left to the trial judge’s discretion and that the court’s ruling will not be overruled absent a clear abuse of discretion____ A.R.S. § 12-2202 places a burden upon the trial court to examine all witnesses under the age of ten to determine their capability of receiving just impressions and relating them truthfully as witnesses, (citations omitted)”

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