Malbrough v. Com.’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

72 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 72 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.

1. “In reviewing the denial of a motion to suppress evidence claiming a violation of a person's Fourth Amendment rights, we consider the facts in the light most favorable to the Commonwealth, the prevailing party at trial. The burden is on the defendant to show that the trial court committed reversible error. We are bound by the trial court's factual findings unless those findings are plainly wrong or unsupported by the evidence. We will review the trial court's application of the law de novo.”

   7 later decisions quote this exact passage · from the majority
   e.g. McGhee v. Com. · Jones v. Com.

2. “The most significant distinction between Reittinger and the present case is that in Reittinger, the trial judge, who alone had the opportunity to look the witnesses in the eye and weigh their credibility, expressly found that the deputy effectively seized Reittinger without probable cause because a reasonable person in the circumstances would conclude that his detention continued and that he was not free to leave. Id. at 236, 532 S.E.2d at 27 . Here, the trial court, after analyzing all the attendant circumstances, made the opposite finding and concluded that a reasonable person would have felt free to ignore the request and leave the scene when Fortier asked Malbrough to consent to a search of his person.”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage · from the majority
   e.g. 52 Va. App. 548 - Jones v. Commonwealth

3. “should take care both to review findings of historical fact only for clear error and to give due weight to inferences drawn from those facts by resident judges and local law enforcement officers.”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage · from the majority
   e.g. Jones v. Com.