Eikmeier v. Bennett’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

2 federal appellate · 13 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 15 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.

1. “"The only purpose in giving such an instruction as we have under consideration is to coerce the jury to agree, otherwise there would be no point in giving it. If the trial court felt there would be need to center attention of the entire panel of jurors on the purposes for which it was called, the duties of the individual jurors in consideration of cases in which they might sit, etc., as said in State v. Hathaway, supra, it would be better were it done when the entire panel of jurors first assembles. If not then given, for adequate reasons arising during the trial of a particular action, such an instruction might not be out of place in connection with other instructions given when the cause is submitted to the jury. But even a very temperate instruction, given after the jury has deliberated for some hours, may very easily concentrate attention on the duty of jurors to agree, to the prejudice of one party. To say to a minority that they should reexamine their views in the light of the opinion held by the majority, without putting a like duty on the majority respecting the opinion of the minority, is wrong. The minority may be right and the majority wrong. Until the legislature provides for verdicts by a definite majority of the jury, the court, by additional instruction, should not suggest, even faintly, that the opinion of the minority is to be controlled by that of the majority." (l.c. 896.) (Emphasis supplied.)”

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

2. ““We are not inclined to hold that in every case it would be error to give the jury additional instructions without notice to or presence of parties or their counsel, although the practice is subject to much criticism. The difficulty in showing a prejudicial result is almost insurmountable, and the trial courts should avoid putting tire losing party in such a predicament.” (p. 891.)”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage
   e.g. Howard v. Miller