Gawn v. State’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

2 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 2 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.

1. ““The proper part that evidence of motive may be made to play, in a criminal trial, is to remove the uncertainty arising from the want of such evidence. Its importance for this purpose is unquestioned; especially, when, as in this case, the State must rely upon circumstantial evidence alone; but it cannot be used as affirmative proof that this building was set on fire by the defendant. “Because of the assumption that all responsible human action is voluntary, and is caused and guided by self-interest, the question of motive necessarily forces itself upon the mind' in the investigation of every alleged criminal act. “It is only, however, when such act is established by other evidence, that the question of motive can be applied to give corroboration and assurance to the conclusions drawn from other evidential facts.” Gawn v. State (1896), 13 Ohio C.C. 116, 127 , 7 Ohio C.D. 19, 25 .”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage
   e.g. 36 Ohio App. 3d 159 - City of Dayton v. Glisson