Gregg v. State’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

35 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 35 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.

1. “In that case, the District Court of Maryland ordered a competency evaluation of John Leon Gregg, who was charged with second-degree assault. At the competency hearing that followed, the district court—after reviewing the report prepared by the facility where Gregg had been evaluated, hearing testimony from one of Gregg’s evaluators, and questioning Gregg directly—found Gregg competent to stand trial. Gregg subsequently prayed a jury trial and the case was transferred to the circuit court, where Gregg was tried by a jury and found guilty. He thereafter noted an appeal, contending that the circuit court had a duty to inquire into his competence to stand trial and had erred in failing to do so. The Court of Appeals explained that, when Gregg’s case was removed to the circuit court, “the proceedings properly began anew,” and the circuit court was not bound by the district court’s ruling on “pre-trial matters,” including any prior determination of Gregg’s competence. Since the circuit court trial was a “separate and distinct” proceeding from the district court trial, the issue of Gregg’s competence to stand trial had to be “raised anew in the Circuit Court proceedings,” according to the Court of Appeals, “in order to compel the need for a competency determination.” Because that issue was not raised anew in the circuit court, and because Gregg’s behavior at trial did not trigger any obligation of that court to evaluate his competence sua sponte, the issue of Gregg’s competency “was”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage
   e.g. Sibug v. State

2. “(a) First Appearance in Court Without Counsel.—At the defendant’s first appearance in court without counsel, or when the defendant appears in the District Court without counsel, demands a jury trial, and the record does not disclose prior compliance with this section by a judge, the court shall: (1) Make certain that the defendant has received a copy of the charging document containing notice as to the right to counsel. (2) Inform the defendant of the right to counsel and of the importance of assistance of counsel. (3) Advise the defendant of the nature of the charges in the charging document, and the allowable penalties, including mandatory penalties, if any. (4) Conduct a waiver inquiry pursuant to section (b) of this Rule if the defendant indicates a desire to waive counsel. (5) If trial is to be conducted on a subsequent date, advise the defendant that if the defendant appears for trial without counsel, the court could determine that the defendant waived counsel and proceed to trial with the defendant unrepresented by counsel. The clerk shall note compliance with this section in the file or in the docket. * * * (b) Express Waiver of Counsel. If a defendant who is not represented by counsel indicates a desire to waive counsel, the court may not accept the waiver until it determines, after an examination on the record conducted by the court, the State’s Attorney, or both, that the defendant is knowingly and voluntarily waiving the right to counsel. If the file or docket doe”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage · from the majority
   e.g. 190 Md. App. 577 - Walker v. State

3. “A competency hearing and determination must meet the due process requirements under the Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution and Article 21 of the Maryland Declaration of Rights. See Medina [v. California ], 505 U.S. [437] at 439, 112 S.Ct. [2572] at 2574, 120 L.Ed.2d [353] at 359 [ (1992) ] (stating that “it is well established that the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment [to the United States Constitution] prohibits the criminal prosecution of a defendant who is not competent to stand trial”); Drope, 420 U.S. at 171 , 95 S.Ct. at 903 , 43 L.Ed.2d at 113 (noting the longstanding belief that a person who lacks the capacity to understand the nature and object of the proceedings against him may not stand trial); Pate, 383 U.S. at 378 , 86 S.Ct. at 838 , 15 L.Ed.2d at 818 (concluding that “the conviction of an accused person while he is legally incompetent violates due process”); Trimble v. State, 321 Md. 248, 254 , 582 A.2d 794, 797 (1990) (stating that “[i]f a state fails to observe procedures adequate to protect a defendant’s right not to be tried or convicted while incompetent, it denies him due process”); Jones v. State, 280 Md. 282, 290 , 372 A.2d 1064, 1068 (1977) (finding that the failure to invoke proper statutory procedures designed to insure that the defendant not be tried if incompetent may result in the denial of a fair trial).”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage · from the majority
   e.g. Sibug v. State