United States v. Smith’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

2 federal appellate · 2 district ·

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

1. ““A preliminary question raised in the argument was whether the District Attorney may of right, by virtue of his official prerogative, file informations charging citizens with offenses brought officially to his knowledge. This cannot be done, under the rules and practice of this court, except upon previous complaint under oath, after opportunity has been given the accused to appear before the examining officer, and to confront the witnesses testifying in support of the complaint. This requisite makes it necessary that the District Attorney shall have leave from the court to file an information; and, if it is within the discretion of the court whether to grant the leave or not, then the right to file is not a prerogative of the prosecutor’s office, and the court may require him, before granting leave, to bring the accused, by rule or other proceeding, before the court, to show cause, if cause there be, against the filing of the information.””

   1 later decision quote this exact passage
   e.g. Weeks v. United States

2. ““Convicts of this district are sent to penitentiaries outside of Virginia,under the authority of section 5546 of the Revised Statutes, which does not, like section 5541, limit the class of persons sent to those who are sentenced for ‘ longer than one year.’ The practice of the court, when sentencing for as long a term as one year, is to order the confinement to be in a penitentiary. Section 5546, and this practice of the court, clearly bring the case at bar ■within the purview of the Cases of Wilson, [ 5 Sup. Ct. Rep. 935 ;] Mackin, [ 6 Sup. Ct. Rep. 777 ,] and De Walt, [ 9 Sup. Ct. Rep. 111 .]””

   1 later decision quote this exact passage · from the majority
   e.g. United States v. Cobb

3. ““I do not agree with counsel, who resist the filing of tbis information, that the term ‘state prison’ was used by the Supreme Court in the general sense of any jail or lockup of a county or city owned, by the state. Such a construction would lead us to the absurd conclusion 1hat the Supreme Court meant to hold that no offense involving confinement, however brief, in a state or city jail or station house could bo prosecuted by information.””

   1 later decision quote this exact passage · from the majority
   e.g. United States v. Nelson