State v. Nelson’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

2 federal appellate · 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 25 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.

1. “[s]tatutes defining crimes are to be strictly construed and not to be held to include charges plainly without the fair scope and intendment of the language of the statute, though within its reason and policy, and in the event of doubts they are to be resolved in favor of the accused.”

   2 later decisions quote this exact passage
   e.g. State v. Kool · State v. Pearson

2. ““If any man and woman not being married to each other, lewdly and viciously associate and cohabit together, or if any man or woman, married or unmarried, is guilty of open and gross lewdness, and designedly makes an open and indecent or obscene exposure of his or her person, or of the person of another, every such person shall be imprisoned in the county jail not exceeding six months, or be fined not exceeding two hundred dollars.” (Emphasis supplied).”

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

3. “It is the legislature, not the court, which is to define crime and ordain its punish-ment_ It would be dangerous, indeed, to carry the principle that a case which is within the reason or mischief of a statute is within its provision so far as to punish a crime not enumerated in the statute because it is of equal atrocity or of kindred character with those which are enumerated.”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage
   e.g. State v. Applause Video, Inc.