Bratcher v. Commonwealth’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

19 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 19 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.

1. “Rule of Criminal Procedure (RCr) 6.20 permits the joinder for trial of two or more defendants if “they are alleged to have participated in the same act or transaction or in the same series of acts or transactions constituting an offense or offenses.” Joint trials are a mainstay of our system, as they give the jury the best perspective on all the evidence and thus increase the likelihood of proper verdicts and avoid the possibility of inconsistent ones. Conflicting versions of what happened, we have thus noted, “is a reason for rather than against a joint trial.” ... RCr 9.16, on the other hand, requires that trials be severed “if it appears that a defendant or the Commonwealth is or will be prejudiced” by the joinder.”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage · from the majority
   e.g. Quisenberry v. Commonwealth

2. “KRE 404(c) would be inapplicable here because it applies only to the prosecution, whereas the cross-examination in question here was by the lawyer for a co-defendant.”). . In the sake of clarity, we note that the requirement of avowal testimony by a witness, as opposed to an offer of proof by counsel, was not intended by the drafters of KRE 103(a)(2) and, at least arguably, an attempt at its elimination was made. Professor Lawson notes that former KRE 103(a)(2)”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage · from the majority
   e.g. Henderson v. Commonwealth

3. “What I’m going to write has to stay between us regardless of who may ask you anything about anything okay? First Butler [Assistant Commonwealth Attorney] says to my lawyers if I give them a story they can believe he’ll give me 25 years. But if I don’t get up and testify the same way in court he’ll give me life without parole.... He says if I don’t give a statement than (sic) I’ll die and you’ll walk.”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage · from the majority
   e.g. Bratcher v. Commonwealth