Brack v. Wells’s Empirical Analysis
1944
Citation profile
3 federal appellate · 4 district · 109 state decisions
How this case has been cited
Cited by 118 later decisions — most recently August 2024 · most notably Philip Morris Inc. v. Angeletti (2000), Evans v. State (1985)
3 federal appellate · 4 district · 109 state decisions
Later decisions citing this case, by decade. The current decade is in progress, and our corpus holds fewer opinions from the most recent years, so the latest bars are undercounted — not a real decline.
Relationships
Applies 18 U.S.C. § 241 (Church Arson Prevention Act of 1996)
Relies on Edwin Hale v. William Henkel · Frisbie v. United States · People ex rel. Livingston v. Wyatt · Coblentz v. State · In Re Report of Grand Jury
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 118 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.
“"In such prosecutions of persons accused of crime, he [the State's Attorney] must exercise a sound discretion to distinguish between the guilty and the innocent. He must be trusted with broad official discretion to institute and prosecute criminal causes, subject generally to judicial control. The office is one not purely ministerial, but involves the exercise of learning and discretion.... As a general rule, whether the State's Attorney does or does not institute a particular prosecution is a matter which rests in his discretion. Unless that discretion is grossly abused or such duty compelled by statute or there is a clear showing that such duty exists, mandamus will not lie."”
10 later decisions quote this exact passage · from the majority“That other adequate remedy to which the petitioner is entitled is that of personally presenting his case to the grand jury of Baltimore City.... The members of the grand jury in their oath prescribed by the common law, in addition to other things, swore that they would diligently inquire and true presentment make of all such matters and things as shall be given them in charge or shall otherwise come to their knowledge. The inquisitorial powers of the grand jury are not limited to cases in which there has been a preliminary proceeding before a magistrate nor to cases laid before them by the Court or the State’s Attorney. Whatever may be the duties and powers of that important body in other jurisdictions, in Maryland those inquisitorial powers are broad, full and of a plenary character.... Under these broad inquisitorial powers the grand jury may, of course, investigate a case which the State’s attorney, in his discretion, has decided not to present to that body....”
1 later decision quote this exact passage · from the majority“give information of the fact to the grand jury”
1 later decision quote this exact passage · from the majority
How this case has been treated — in progress
Whether each later court followed, distinguished, criticized, or overruled this decision. The treatment classification (task #35) runs highest-cited cases first and lights up here as it reaches this one.