State v. Peeler’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

2 district · 47 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 51 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.

1. “the right to counsel of choice is circumscribed in several important respects.... Significantly, a defendant may not insist on representation by an attorney he cannot afford or who for other reasons declines to represent the defendant.... [T]he right to counsel of choice does not extend to defendants who require counsel to be appointed for them.... Nor may a defendant insist on representation by a person who is not a member of the bar, or demand that a court honor his waiver of conflict-free representation .... We have recognized a trial court's wide latitude in balancing the right to counsel of choice against the needs of fairness ... and against the demands of its calendar .... The court has, moreover, an independent interest in ensuring that criminal trials are conducted within the ethical standards of the profession and that legal proceedings appear fair to all who observe them.”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage · from the dissent
   e.g. 177 Conn. App. 18 - State v. Taylor

2. “When either side in a criminal case seeks to call as a witness either a prosecutor or a defense attorney who is or has been professionally involved in the case, that party must demonstrate that the testimony is necessary and not merely relevant, and that all other available sources of comparably probative evidence have been exhausted. ... This compelling need test strikes the appropriate balance between, on the one hand, the need for information and, on the other hand, the potential adverse effects on the attorney-client relationship and the judicial process in general.”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage · from the dissent
   e.g. State v. Fay

3. “To overcome the presumption in favor of a defendant's choice of counsel, a disqualification decision by the trial court must, therefore, be based upon a reasoned determination on the basis of a fully prepared record .... Because the interest at stake is nothing less than a criminal defendant's sixth amendment right to counsel of his choice, the trial court cannot vitiate this right without first scrutinizing closely the basis for the claim. Only in this way can a criminal defendant's right to counsel of his choice be appropriately protected.”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage · from the dissent
   e.g. 177 Conn. App. 18 - State v. Taylor