Hack v. State’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

3 federal appellate · 1 district · 35 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 43 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.

1. ““ The ancient doctrine that the accused could waive nothing was unquestionably founded upon the anxiety of the courts to see that no innocent man should be convicted. It arose in those days when the accused could not testify in his own behalf, was not furnished counsel, and was punished, if convicted, by the death penalty or some other grievous punishment out of all proportion to the gravity of his crime. Under such circumstances it. was well, perhaps, that such a rule should exist, ,and well that every technical requirement should be insisted on, when the state demanded its meed of blood. Such a course raised up a sort of a barrier which the court could utilize when a prosecution was successful which ought not to have been successful, or when a man without money, without counsel, without ability to summon witnesses, and not permitted to tell his own story, had been unjustly convicted, but yet under the ordinary principles of waiver, as applied to civil matters, had waived every defect in the proceedings. “ Thanks to the humane policy of the modern criminal law we have changed all these conditions. The man now charged with crime is furnished the most complete opportunity for making his defense. He may testify in his own behalf; if he be poor, he may have counsel furnished him by the state, and may have his witnesses summoned and paid for by the state; not infrequently he is thus furnished counsel more able than the attorney for the state. In short, the modern law has taken as”

   2 later decisions quote this exact passage
   e.g. Patton v. United States · Hagner v. United States

2. ““The defect is merely technical, affecting no-rights whatever. . . . Nor may this court on appeal regard technical errors or defects or exceptions which do not affect substantial rights.” [Referring to a statute from which ours was copied.] “If this section is to have any meaning at all it applies exactly to a case like the present. . . . Every one who knows anything of a criminal trial must see that the omission did the defendant no harm. . . . Where the .prisoner appears with his own counsel, the omission formally to arraign and ask for a plea is immaterial to his rights and may be deemed to be waived. ’ ’”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage
   e.g. State v. O'Kelley

3. ““The court shall, in every stage of -an action, disregard any error or defect in the pleadings or- proceedings which shall not affect the substantial rights of the adverse party; and no judgment shall be reversed or affected by reason of such error or defect.””

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