Stephens v. State’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

39 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 39 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.

1. “[o]ut-of-time appeals are designed to address the constitutional concerns that arise when a criminal defendant is denied his first appeal of right because the counsel to which he was constitutionally entitled to assist him in that appeal was professionally deficient in not advising him to file a timely appeal and that deficiency caused prejudice.”

   8 later decisions quote this exact passage
   e.g. Shuman v. State · Pineda v. State

2. “'The ability to decide the appeal based on the existing record thus becomes the deciding factor in determining the availability of an out-of-time appeal when the defendant has pled guilty.'”

   6 later decisions quote this exact passage
   e.g. Reid v. the State · Snelson v. State

3. “if the claims that the defendant wants to raise in the out-of-time appeal can be resolved against him on the face of the record, so that even a timely appeal would have been unsuccessful, “then plea counsel’s failure to advise the defendant to file such an appeal was not professionally deficient, nor did any prejudice result.””

   2 later decisions quote this exact passage
   e.g. Reid v. the State · Hagan v. State