27 Va. App. 21 - Wood v. Commonwealth’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

20 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 23 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.

1. “Because of the extensive regulation of motor vehicles and traffic, and also because of the frequency with which a vehicle can become disabled or involved in an accident on public highways, the extent of police-citizen contact involving automobiles will be substantially greater than police-citizen contact in a home or office. Some such contacts will occur because the officer may believe the operator has violated a criminal statute, but many more will not be of that nature. Local police officers, unlike federal officers, frequently investigate vehicle accidents in which there is no claim of criminal liability and engage in what, for want of a better term, may be described as community caretaking functions, totally divorced from the detection, investigation, or acquisition of evidence relating to the violation of a criminal statute.”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage
   e.g. 43 Va. App. 603 - Kyer v. Commonwealth

2. “[pjolice have “complex and multiple tasks to perform in addition to identifying and apprehending persons committing serious criminal offenses;” by design or default, the police are also expected to “reduce the opportunities for the commission of some crimes through preventive patrol and other measures,” “aid individuals who are in danger of physical harm,” “assist those who cannot care for themselves,” “resolve conflict,” “create and maintain a feeling of security in the community,” and “provide other services on an emergency basis.””

   1 later decision quote this exact passage · from the dissent
   e.g. 43 Va. App. 603 - Kyer v. Commonwealth

3. “The Supreme Court’s emphasis on the distinction between motor vehicle searches and searches of an individual’s home makes clear that the community caretaking function used to uphold a vehicle search, such as existed in Cady , may not be sufficient to justify an intrusion into an individual’s home. The fact that circumstances which justify a warrantless search in an automobile may not justify an intrusion into a home or office under the community caretaking function was reiterated in South Dakota v. Opperman, 428 U.S. 364 (1976).”

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