Foltz Appeal’s Empirical Analysis
1952
Citation profile
15 state decisions
How this case has been cited
Cited by 16 later decisions — most recently September 1999
15 state decisions
Later decisions citing this case, by decade. The current decade is in progress, and our corpus holds fewer opinions from the most recent years, so the latest bars are undercounted — not a real decline.
Relationships
Relies on Bowman's Case · Lloyd v. Smith · Commonwealth ex rel. Vesneski v. Reid · Crane's Appeal
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 16 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.
“"When the people of any municipality, in a duly constituted election, select certain individuals to conduct their local government, those representatives of the people may be removed from office only upon showing of a perverseness which amounts to criminality or culpable indifference to their official duties. This Court, speaking through Mr. Justice Simpson, aptly said in the case of Commonwealth ex rel. Vesneski, Appellant, v. Reid, 265 Pa. 328, 333 , 108 A. 829 , 831: `. . . the people are entitled to the services of the officer during the entire term for which they elected him ( Lloyd v. Smith, 176 Pa. 213 , 35 A. 199 ), unless he be removed in the way prescribed by the Constitution, if the officer is a constitutional officer ( Bowman's Case, 225 Pa. 364 , 74 A. 203 ), or by the Legislature or under its authority in the manner provided by Constitution or statute, if the officer is not a constitutional officer.' There are certain mandatory functions required of township supervisors, the failure to perform which will subject them to removal. Crane's Appeal, 344 Pa. 624 , 26 A.2d 457 . This does not mean, however, that they should be threatened with dismissal for honest errors in judgment or for mistakes in administration not occasioned by cupidity or pathological sloth. People demand of their representatives government which is efficient and in meticulous keeping with the highest standards of devotion to their interests. But they are not prepared to dismiss their public offi”
3 later decisions quote this exact passage“"[I]f any township officer refuses or neglects to perform his duties, the court of quarter sessions, upon complaint in writing by five percentum of the registered electors of the township, may issue a rule upon such officer to show cause why his office should not be declared vacant and another appointed in his stead.. . . Upon hearing, and proof that the facts alleged in the complaint are true, the court may declare the office vacant and appoint another in his stead, to hold office during the term of the officer deposed, or to make such other order as to the court may seem just or proper."”
3 later decisions quote this exact passage“as was required by the statutory removal procedure at issue. The complaint and petition in Foltz were brought pursuant to section 503 of the Second Class Township Law (1947 P. L. 1481, as amended, 53 P.S. § 19093-503) which provides that:”
1 later decision quote this exact passage
How this case has been treated — in progress
Whether each later court followed, distinguished, criticized, or overruled this decision. The treatment classification (task #35) runs highest-cited cases first and lights up here as it reaches this one.