179 Md. App. 32 - Washington v. State’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

10 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 10 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.

1. “"Photographs may be admissible under one of two distinct rules. Typically, photographs are admissible to illustrate testimony of a witness when that witness testifies from first-hand knowledge that the photograph fairly and accurately represents the scene or object it purports to depict as it existed at the relevant time. There is a second, alternative method of authenticating photographs that does not require first-hand knowledge. The `silent witness' theory of admissibility authenticates `a photograph as a `mute' or `silent' independent photographic witness because the photograph speaks with its own probative effect.'"”

   3 later decisions quote this exact passage
   e.g. Washington v. State · Jackson v. State

2. “"Upon our independent review of the record, we can affirmatively say beyond a reasonable doubt that the trial court's error in admitting the videotape and still photographs without proper authentication did not in any way influence appellant's verdict. Lawson v. State, 389 Md. 570, 581 , 886 A.2d 876 (2005). The videotape and still photographs added to or illustrated the testimony of Wright, Burrell and Jennings and, thus, in our view, the jury would have found appellant guilty without reliance on the improperly admitted evidence. Because the error `probably' did not affect the jury's verdict, a reversal is not warranted. Strickland v. Washington, 466 U.S. 668 , 104 S.Ct. 2052 , 80 L.Ed.2d 674 (1984); Kotteakos v. United States, 328 U.S. 750 , 66 S.Ct. 1239 , 90 L.Ed. 1557 (1946) (Non-constitutional errors require reversal only when the error `substantially' or `probably' affected the jury's verdict and, thus, to put it another way, only when there is no probability that the jury's verdict would have been different is the error harmless)."”

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

3. “"With later advancements in the art of photography ... and with increasing awareness of the manifold evidentiary uses of the products of the art, it has become clear that an additional theory of admissibility of photographs is entitled to recognition. Thus, even though no human is capable of swearing that he personally perceived what a photograph purports to portray (so that it is not possible to satisfy the requirements of the `pictorial testimony' rationale) there may nevertheless be good warrant for receiving the photograph in evidence. Given an adequate foundation assuring the accuracy of the process producing it, the photograph should then be received as a so-called silent witness or as a witness which `speaks for itself.'"”

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