Richmond v. Polk’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

13 federal appellate · 1 district · 2 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 30 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.

1. “Morgan does not require that a capital defendant be allowed to determine at voir dire what a prospective juror’s sentencing decision will be if presented with a specific state of evidence or circumstances. Rather, Morgan requires that a capital defendant be afforded an adequate opportunity at voir dire to identify prospective jurors who, even prior to the State’s case in chief, have predetermined to impose the death penalty.”

   2 later decisions quote this exact passage · from the majority
   e.g. Hodges v. Colson · Hodges v. Colson

2. “1. Have you given much thought to the idea of the death penalty before you were called [into] court this week? J.A. 104. 2. If the circumstances that were argued in mitigation were not circumstances that would legally justify the killing, would you be able to give consideration to those mitigating circumstances? Id. at 107. 3.As you sit there right now, and understanding that you don't know much about this case and you shouldn't, at this point, but given how you feel about things and what you have been questioned about and informed of, can you say that, if it comes down to a question of life or death in this case, that your mind is as open to a life sentence[?] Id. at 114. 4. Would you, in reaching your determination about the appropriate sentence to vote for, either life or death, be able to give fair consideration to mitigating circumstances? Id. at 124. 5. So that, even though there may be evidence offered, or argued, as mitigation that you would still, bottom line, be considering a killing that was intentional, premeditated, and without any legal justification or excuse. With this little lead up, can you tell me how you would feel about the death penalty as a punishment for that kind of crime, taking those things into consideration? Id. at 161-62. 6.And would you choose the death penalty in every case of deliberate, premeditated, intentional murder for [ ] which there is no legal justification or excuse? Id. at 163.”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage · from the concurrence
   e.g. 366 F. Supp. 2d 822 - United States v. Johnson

3. “have the opportunity to inform the jury of their parole ineligibility irrespective of how it came about.” Id. at 333 . Unlike the petitioner in Richmond, Campbell is not ineligible for parole”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage · from the concurrence
   e.g. Campbell v. Polk