13 Mass. App. Ct. 373 - Commonwealth v. Brugmann’s Empirical Analysis
1982
Citation profile
28 state decisions
How this case has been cited
Cited by 28 later decisions — most recently November 2018 · most notably Commonwealth v. Pike (1998), Commonwealth v. Capitolo (1985)
28 state decisions
Later decisions citing this case, by decade. The current decade is in progress, and our corpus holds fewer opinions from the most recent years, so the latest bars are undercounted — not a real decline.
Relationships
Applies 42 U.S.C. § 7401 (Air Quality Act of 1967)
Relies on United States v. Bailey · 43 Cal. App. 3d 823 - People v. Lovercamp · Garrett Freightlines, Inc. v. United States · Commonwealth v. Rodriguez · Northern States Power Co. v. Minnesota
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 28 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.
“[T]he application of the defense is limited to the following circumstances: (1) the defendant is faced with a clear and imminent danger, not one which is debatable or speculative; (2) the defendant can reasonably expect that his action will be effective as the direct cause of abating the danger; (3) there is no legal alternative which will be effective in abating the danger; and (4) the legislature has not acted to preclude the defense by a clear and deliberate choice regarding the values at issue.”
2 later decisions quote this exact passage“only if there is evidence that would warrant a reasonable doubt whether [the defendants' actions were] justified as a choice between evils. See Commonwealth v. Thurber, 383 Mass. [328, 331 (1981)]. If the question is properly raised, the Commonwealth then has the burden to prove the absence of justification beyond a reasonable doubt.”
1 later decision quote this exact passage“exonerates one who commits a crime under the 'pressure of circumstances' if the harm that would have resulted from compliance with the law ... exceeds the harm actually resulting from the defendant's violation of the law.”
1 later decision quote this exact passage
How this case has been treated — in progress
Whether each later court followed, distinguished, criticized, or overruled this decision. The treatment classification (task #35) runs highest-cited cases first and lights up here as it reaches this one.