State v. Watson’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

2 federal appellate · 2 district · 41 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 55 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.

1. ““The rate of speed at which an automobile is running is not a matter exclusively for the testimony of experts. If that was true, then, as has been intimated by this court, it would be a matter of impossibility for those injured by the running of vehicles, either automobiles, street cars, or regular railroad cars, to always have experts at hand to show what rate of speed was being made. A holding of that character would be wholly impracticable, and do a great injustice to many persons who had been negligently injured by vehicles of the character indicated running at an excessive rate of speed. At last, the only reasonable settlement of that question is to hold that witnesses who at least know what an automobile is and have seen them operated might give their opinions as to the rate of speed. As to the weight to which such opinions are entitled is a matter entirely for the jury.” See, also, 3 Wigmore on Evidence, § 1977; Commonwealth v. Sturtivant, 117 Mass. 122 ; State v. Welford, 29 R. I. 450.”

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

2. ““It is fundamental that an indictment or information predicated upon the provisions of a statute must charge the offense in the language of the statute, and the allegations in the indictment or information must be sufficient to fully inform the defendant of the nature and character of the offense he is called upon to answer upon his final trial.””

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

3. “Directing our attention to the first proposition as to the sufficiency of the information to support the judgment, we find that the information charges the defendant with the commission of manslaughter of the fourth degree, and is predicated upon the provisions of Section 1834, Revised Statutes 1899, which provides:”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage
   e.g. People v. Rodríguez Rosario