State v. Merrill’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

21 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 21 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.

1. “In order to protect both competing constitutional rights, the better practice is for the trial court first to conduct sufficient inquiry into the defendant’s experience, motives, and understanding of what he is undertaking to determine the quality of his purported waiver, and then to provide a clear explanation of the adverse consequences of pro se representation. This discussion should appear on the record so that a reviewing court may determine that the defendant knowingly accepted the risk.”

   2 later decisions quote this exact passage
   e.g. State v. Levesque · State v. van Aelstyn

2. “Never have we remanded such a case in an effort to put Humpty Dumpty back together again. We trivialize a fundamental constitutional right by allowing the State to try its case as to the waiver of that right by trial and error. Where the record is inadequate to establish the waiver of a constitutional entitlement, there simply is no waiver.”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage · from the concurrence
   e.g. 211 Wis. 2d 194 - State v. Klessig

3. “Defendant applied for appointment of counsel on appeal, and was denied as financially ineligible. His income had been at least as great at the time of trial. Thus, his only alternative at the time of trial would have been for him to retain counsel”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage · from the dissent
   e.g. State v. Levesque