Thompson v. Com.’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

11 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 13 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.

1. “previously defined a “dirk” as “a long straight-bladed dagger” or “a short sword.” Wood v. Henry County Public Schools, 255 Va. 85 , 95 n. 6, 495 S.E.2d 255 , 261 n. 6 [ (1998) ] (quoting Webster’s Third New International Dictionary 642 (1981)); see also Richards v. Commonwealth, 18 Va.App. 242 , 246 n. 2, 443 S.E.2d 177 , 179 n. 2 (1994) (defining a dirk as “any stabbing weapon having two sharp edges and a point, including daggers, short swords, and stilettos”). A “dagger” is “a short knife used for stabbing,” and its definition refers to a “stiletto.” Webster’s Third New International Dictionary 570 (1993). However, the definition of a “stiletto” is not particularly helpful, as it is defined as “a slender dagger with a blade that is thick in proportion to its breadth.” Id. at 2243. The definition of a “sword” is more instructive: “a weapon with a long blade for cutting or thrusting set in a hilt usually terminating in a pommel and often having a tang or a protective guard where the blade joins the handle.” Id. at 2314.”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage
   e.g. 41 So. 3d 729 - Summerall v. State

2. “‘[subsequent use or circumstances may not be considered in the definitional analysis of”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage
   e.g. 55 Va. App. 392 - McMillan v. Commonwealth