Ray v. State’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

2 federal appellate · 11 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 13 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.

1. “When evaluating harm from non-constitutional error flowing from the exclusion of relevant evidence, we examine the record as a whole, and if we are fairly assured that the error did not influence the jury or had but a slight effect, we conclude that the error was harmless.”

   2 later decisions quote this exact passage · from the majority
   e.g. Busby v. Davis · Busby v. Davis

2. “A review of the record as a whole reveals that the question of possession was not only the most important issue in the case, it was the only contested issue in the case. Appellant was prejudiced because she was precluded from presenting third-party witness testimony which would have corroborated and given independent credibility to the defense she sought to establish. Because appellant’s only argument was that she did not possess the drugs, and the State’s case rested on a contrary argument, the erroneous exclusion of testimony that tended to establish possession in another was a “serious” error.... However, as Justice Carter points out [in his concurring opinion], this [whether it would have added significantly to Ray’s defense] was an issue for the jury to decide — not the court of appeals. As the jury did not have the benefit of the third-party testimony upon the most critical element the State had the burden to prove, we cannot say with fair assurance that the error did not influence the jury or had but a slight effect.”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage · from the majority
   e.g. Walters v. State