Jones v. State’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

4 federal appellate · 29 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 35 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.

1. “[T]he evidence showed that the victim, Roger Tackett, was the manager of a Tenneco convenience store. On June 16, 1979, he arrived at the store at 11:20 p.m. to close it for the night. After the other employees left, Tackett remained at the store to complete some paperwork. At approximately 1:45 a.m., Officer Kendall of the Cobb County police department drove a stranded motorist to the Tenneco parking lot so she could use a pay phone. Officer Kendall observed a car (Tackett’s) parked in front of the store with the driver’s-side door open; the lights were also still on inside the store. Since the Tenneco store was in his regular patrol area, Officer Kendall knew that it usually closed at midnight. Suspicious, he walked to the store and saw through the front window Brandon Jones stick his head out of the storeroom door at the back of the store, look around (apparently without seeing the officer), and then close the storeroom door. Officer Kendall entered through the unlocked front door and heard three shots, a pause, and then a fourth shot. He drew his weapon and after shouting “police, come on out” without a response, approached the storeroom door and opened it. Jones and his co-defendant, Van Roosevelt Solomon, were standing just inside the door. Officer Kendall ordered them into the main store area, where he searched them and handcuffed Jones. He placed Solomon in his patrol car since he only had one set of handcuffs, and called for assistance on the radio. He also informed ”

   3 later decisions quote this exact passage
   e.g. Jones v. GDCP Warden · Jones v. Warden

2. “The thing that bothers me most about this case, and I hope it bothers you, is the complete lack of remorse. Have you seen any remorse in this case? I hope I’m wrong about it. I hope you saw some, because I didn’t. None of the defense witnesses who testified told you anything about Jones being remorseful. Again, I hope I’m wrong. No one has claimed through Jones’s lawyers or his writings that he has apologized to the Tackett family or sought their forgiveness. No one has claimed through Jones’s web site on the Internet that he’s apologized to the Tackett family or sought their forgiveness. Now, who has the power of forgiveness on this earth? Well, that belongs to Mr. Tackett, and in his ■ absence, to Mrs. Tackett and her daughter, and there’s no evidence that they have been asked. I find that ... unusual for eighteen years he’s had that opportunity. He’s got all kinds of pen pals who apparently would do anything for him. I’m sure if asked, they would have been dispatched to Florida. But there’s no indication or evidence that they were asked. So where is the remorse? Is not that the kind of conduct that deserves the death penalty?”

   2 later decisions quote this exact passage · from the dissent
   e.g. Jones v. Warden · Brandon Jones v. GDCP Warden

3. “frequently refused to cooperate with his appointed counsel and repeatedly sought to have them replaced”

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