Scott v. Com.’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

18 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 18 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.

1. “The term “common scheme” describes crimes that share features idiosyncratic in character, which permit an inference that each individual offense was committed by the same person or persons as part of a pattern of criminal activity involving certain identified crimes.... In contrast, the term “common plan” describes crimes that are related to one another for the purpose of accomplishing a particular goal.”

   3 later decisions quote this exact passage
   e.g. Commonwealth v. Holloway · Charles Stanard Severance v. Commonwealth of Virginia

2. “[t]wo or more offenses, any of which may be a felony or misdemeanor, may be charged in separate counts of an indictment or information if the offenses are based on the same act or transaction, or on two or more acts or transactions that are connected or constitute parts of a common scheme or plan.”

   2 later decisions quote this exact passage
   e.g. Charles Stanard Severance v. Commonwealth of Virginia · FARMER (STEVEN) VS. STATE

3. “The absence of idiosyncratic features in the present record leaves a record showing only separate crimes of the same type that share features that are likely similar to numerous other robbery offenses. Notably, the present record does not indicate the relative location of each robbery to the other robberies committed, and thus fails to show that the robberies were committed in any particular neighborhood or area of this large city. The record also fails to show that a weapon of the same description was used in the commission of the crimes, that the robber made unusual threatening remarks, or that the robber chose victims only of a certain gender or age group. We cite these various factors, not as requirements of a “common scheme,” but merely to illustrate that the possible range of idiosyncratic features that may establish a “common scheme” is very broad, and that no such idiosyncratic features were common incidents of all the present offenses.”

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