2015 Pa. Super. 202 - Commonwealth v. Jordan’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 5 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.

1. “In this case, the prison tapes are discoverable, on request by defense counsel to the Commonwealth, under Pa.R.Crim.P, 573(B)(1)(b) as an inculpatory statement or Pa.R.Crim.P. 573(B)(1)(g) as a recording of any electronic surveillance. The trial court has broad discretion in deciding the admissibility of evidence and in choosing the appropriate remedy for a discovery violation. Under Pa. R.Crim.P. 573(E), “if at any time during the course of the proceedings, it is brought to the attention of the court that a party has failed to comply with this rule, the court may order such party to permit discovery or inspection, may grant a continuance, or may prohibit such party from introducing evidence not disclosed, other than testimony of the defendant, or it may enter such other order as it deems just under the circumstances.” In fact, the Sixth Amendment demands that in all criminal prosecutions, the accused shall enjoy the right to effective counsel and to be confronted with the witnesses against him. U.S. Const, amend. VI. Thus, Defendant’s Sixth Amendment rights would be violated without a timely produced transcription of the tapes and render counsel ineffective.”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage
   e.g. Commonwealth v. Maldonodo

2. “If materiality and reasonableness are proven, then the courts must balance the public interest in the police's ability to obtain information against the defendant's right to prepare his defense. In this connection, we consider the crime, the potential defense, and the significance of the [confidential informant's] testimony. The scales tip in favor of disclosure if the Commonwealth will be relying on police testimony based on a single observation. If other proof corroborates a police officer's testimony, disclosure is not mandated. Furthermore, the safety of the confidential informant can be a controlling factor in determining whether to reveal a source's identity.”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage
   e.g. Commonwealth v. Ellison