State v. Lewis’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

5 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. ““Although the accused might, with his knowledge of the transaction, well understand the offense for which he was arraigned, if the information had merely stated that at a certain time and place he defrauded, by false pretenses, the prosecuting witness of moneys and property to the amount of $330, yet such a statement in an information does not conform to the provisions of the statute, nor to the rules adopted in criminal pleadings, and is wholly insufficient. The pleader may always have the statute before him in drawing informations, and we see no reason for extending the rule further, than that while the exact words of the statute in charging the offense need not be used, other words conveying the same meaning must be employed, if the exact words of the statute be omitted. There is no good reason why an offense charged in an information shall not be clearly set forth in plain and concise language according to the terms of the statute under which the information is drawn. To favor as liberal a construction of a criminal pleading as the District Court intimates may be done, would in fact open the door to a disregard of the statute, and overthrow all the recognized rules governing criminal proceedings.””

   1 later decision quote this exact passage · from the majority
   e.g. State v. Watson