31 Md. App. 303 - Johnson v. State’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

40 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 40 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.

1. “[Ejvidence of the use of a polygraph as a device to obtain a statement is substantially less prejudicial than either the impact of the questionable results of the device or the effect of the defendant's refusal to take the test. The importance of permitting the jury to weigh the coercive effect of every motivating circumstance surrounding the eliciting of a confession, far outweighs the importance of avoiding the possible prejudice from a reference to its use.”

   2 later decisions quote this exact passage · from the majority
   e.g. Murphy v. State · 53 Md. App. 490 - Oliver v. State

2. ““It is apparent that the use of the deception testing device was intended to produce a psychological effect upon the accused in order to obtain the relevant facts if known by appellant. Appellant’s expressed reason for confessing does not gainsay the test’s effectiveness. It is clear, however, that the use of such a procedure for that purpose would not as a matter of law require the exclusion of a confession so obtained. .. .” (Citations omitted)”

   2 later decisions quote this exact passage · from the majority
   e.g. 35 Md. App. 381 - Watson v. State · 51 Md. App. 347 - Mitchell v. State

3. “A trial judge may not select which circumstances relative to voluntariness may go to the jury and which may not. Once its preliminary determination of voluntariness is made, see Jackson v. Denno, 378 U.S. 368 [ 84 S.Ct. 1774 , 12 L.Ed.2d 908 (1964)], all of the relevant evidence bearing on voluntariness must then be submitted to the jury, Day v. State, 196 Md. 384, 399 [ 76 A.2d 729 (1950)]. "The practice in this state, approved in many cases, is that the court first hears evidence without the jury to determine whether a confession is voluntary and should be admitted. If it decides to admit it, the same evidence is then given to the jury, as it has the final determination, irrespective of the court’s preliminary decision, whether or not the confession is voluntary, and whether it should be believed. In so doing, the jury is entitled to have before it all of the evidence which affects the voluntary character of the document, and which the court passed upon in admitting it.” (Emphasis added). [ 31 Md.App. at 306 ],”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage · from the majority
   e.g. 51 Md. App. 347 - Mitchell v. State