State v. Comeaux’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

4 federal appellate · 68 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 78 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.

1. ““Despite the enlightened emancipation of women from the restrictions and protections of bygone years, and their entry into many parts of community life formerly considered to be reserved to men, woman is still regarded as the center of home and family life. We cannot say that it is constitutionally impermissible for a State, acting in pursuit of the general welfare, to conclude that a woman should be relieved from the civic duty of jury service unless she herself .determines that such service is consistent with her own special responsibilities.” • ,”

   3 later decisions quote this exact passage
   e.g. State v. Sinclair · 282 So. 2d 491 - State v. Taylor

2. ““A woman shall not be selected for jury service unless she has previously filed with the clerk of court of the parish in which she resides a written declaration of her desire to be subject to jury service.””

   3 later decisions quote this exact passage
   e.g. State v. Sinclair · 266 So. 2d 541 - Doyle v. U. S. Fidelity & Guaranty Co.

3. ““Appellant contends that the statutes in question and the actions of the Commission pursuant thereto are discriminatory and prejudicial to the accused in violation of Article III, Section 2, Clause 3 and Article IV, Sections 1 and 2, of the Constitution of the United States and the Fifth, Sixth and Fourteenth Amendments in that he is deprived of a jury which represents a fair cross section of the local population. “The requirement that a person be able to read and write the English language to be qualified for jury service is a reasonable and nondiscriminatory regulation by the state which operates equally against all persons tried by juries; it affords no advantage to the state which it does not offer to the accused. Literacy is a requirement, moreover, which, if not essential to that purpose, is more apt to assure an understanding of the evidence and the law and bring about a fair verdict for both the accused and the State. We are of the opinion that this qualification is just as essential to the State’s obligation to assure a fair trial to the accused as it is to assure a fair trial for the State. No authority has been cited which refutes these propositions, and we have been referred to no decisions which hold that the literacy qualification for jurors violates constitutional rights.””

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