State v. Erving’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

12 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. ““The next assignment is that the court committed error in permitting witness Garrison — a brother of the deceased — to testify on re-direct examination to the contents of a letter purporting to have been written by the deceased from Seattle on July 3, 1894. The objection at the trial was that it was not the best evidence. The witness testified that he did not know where the letter was, that he could not produce it in court, that he had no idea where it could be found, and, as we think, laid the foundation for the introduction of the secondary evidence. There is another reason why the ruling cannot be disturbed. On cross-examination the appellant had asked the witness what was said by the deceased in that letter, and thus opened the door to the re-direct examination which followed.””

   1 later decision quote this exact passage · from the majority
   e.g. In Re Hamilton's Estate

2. “the evidence tended very strongly to show that he had induced the deceased to accompany him ... on the pretext that he would give him employment”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage · from the majority
   e.g. 40 Wash. App. 729 - State v. Bernson