Anderson v. Commonwealth’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

58 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 60 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.

1. “' “Where there is any substantial probative evidence in the trial of a criminal case, the guilt or innocence of the defendant should be submitted to the jury by appropriate instructions although a conviction based thereon would be regarded as flagrantly against the evidence; but that rule goes no further, and it does not interfere with the right and authority of the court to direct an acquittal when there is no substantial. probative evidence to establish the guilt of the defendant on trial. Indeed, the latitudinous rule referred to recognizes that the sum total of the proof necessary to- establish a conspiracy consists of a chain of evidence composed of more than one link, each of which singly and alone might be ‘inconclusive and insufficient to prove the conspiracy, ’ but as a whole, ‘ sufficient to show it. ’ The law against crime should be enforced, and it is the duty of the courts and others connected therewith to do so, but it is as important that the innocent go free as that the guilty he punished. So jealous is the law of the rights of the citizen that it is everywhere recognized that no one shall be punished unless his guilt is proven beyond a reasonable doubt. Hence, it is the duty of courts, when called upon to review the proceedings wherein the defendant was convicted, to satisfy themselves that the testimony as a whole was reasonably calculated to produce more than a mere suspicion, and to possess at least some convincing weight. ’ ’”

   2 later decisions quote this exact passage · from the majority
   e.g. Commonwealth v. Russell · Burns v. Commonwealth