18 Wash. App. 564 - State v. Harris’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

4 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 4 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.

1. “At trial, there was a conflict between the testimony of the arresting officer and Harris. Obviously, the informer was a material witness to the crime whose testimony could have corroborated either the arresting officer or Harris' testimony. Under the circumstances, Mr. Harris has met the burden of showing justification for the disclosure and the trial court erred in denying his request.”

   2 later decisions quote this exact passage
   e.g. 91 Wash. 2d 145 - State v. Harris · State v. Joseph

2. “The purpose of the privilege is the furtherance and protection of the public interest in effective law enforcement. The privilege recognizes the obligation of citizens to communicate their knowledge of the commission of crimes to law-enforcement officials and, by preserving their anonymity, encourages them to perform that obligation. We believe that no fixed rule with respect to disclosure is justifiable. The problem is one that calls for balancing the public interest in protecting the flow of information against the individual's right to prepare his defense. Whether a proper balance renders nondisclosure erroneous must depend on the particular circumstances of each case, taking into consideration the crime charged, the possible defenses, the possible significance of the informer's testimony, and other relevant factors.”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage
   e.g. 33 Wash. App. 338 - State v. Helfrich

3. “Where the disclosure of an informer's identity, or of the contents of his communication, is relevant and helpful to the defense of an accused, or is essential to a fair determination of a cause, the privilege must give way.”

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