Lockett v. Commonwealth’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

8 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 8 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.

1. “[B]ecause of the type and size of the vehicles that these drivers of commercial vehicles must operate and because the impact of those vehicles upon public safety, we believe that it is obvious that the legislature had a rational basis for determining that drivers of commercial vehicles in general are not in the same situation as persons who drive non-commercial motor vehicles. {¶ 28} "* * * {¶ 29} "The legislature could have rationally determined that a person convicted of driving while under the influence of intoxicants could be trusted to drive some vehicles with a restricted license, but that he or she should not be permitted to operate commercial motor vehicles on the highway, with their greater potential of danger to the public. Thus, the legislature could have rationally determined that a conviction for driving while under the influence of intoxicants, even if in a noncommercial motor vehicle, was a sufficient indicium of dangerousness that one who was so convicted must be disqualified from driving a commercial motor vehicle even for a limited period.”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage
   e.g. City of Solon v. Martin, 89586 (2-28-2008)

2. “[B]ecause of the type and size of the vehicles that these drivers of commercial vehicles must operate and because the impact of those vehicles upon public safety, we believe that it is obvious that the legislature had a rational basis for determining that drivers of commercial vehicles in general are not in the same situation as persons who drive non-commercial motor vehicles. {¶ 28}”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage
   e.g. City of Solon v. Martin, 89586 (2-28-2008)

3. “It is intended that the adoption of this Act, in conjunction with the adoption of similar legislation in all other states, will improve the safety of commercial motor vehicle operations in Virginia and in the United States by (i) permitting commercial drivers to hold only one driver’s license and to have only one driving record____”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage
   e.g. 50 Va. App. 1 - Meierotto v. Commonwealth