State v. Marshall’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

23 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 27 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.

1. “rooted in fundamental principles of due process which mandate that no individual be forced to speculate, at peril of indictment, whether his or her conduct is prohibited. To ensure that a legislature speaks with special clarity when marking the boundaries of criminal con duct, courts must decline to impose punishments for actions that are not plainly and unmistakably proscribed.”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage · from the majority
   e.g. State of Tennessee v. Ledarren S. Hawkins

2. “Our role in statutory interpretation is to carry out legislative intent without broadening or restricting the statute beyond its intended scope. We find legislative intent in the plain and ordinary meaning of the statutory language when it is unambiguous. When the statute’s meaning is in question, however, we may rely on rules of statutory construction.”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage · from the majority
   e.g. Howell v. Metropolitan Sexually Oriented Business Licensing Board

3. “every word in the statute has meaning and purpose and should be given full effect”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage · from the majority
   e.g. Chuck's Package Store v. City of Morristown