Kelley v. State’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

14 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 14 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.

1. ““ ‘[T]he stealing of several articles at the same time, whether belonging to the same person or to several persons, constituted but one offense.’ ” (Emphasis added). The rationale for that ruling was as follows: “ ‘It is but one offense because the act is one continuous act,—the same transaction; and, the gist of the offense being the felonious taking of the property, we do not see how the legal quality of the act is in any manner affected by the fact that the property stolen, instead of belonging to one person, is the several property of different persons.’ ””

   2 later decisions quote this exact passage
   e.g. 188 Md. App. 185 - Clark v. State · 185 Md. App. 580 - Webb v. State

2. “[W]hen considering whether the theft of multiple items of property, at the same time or at different times, from the same owner or from ■ different owners, constitutes one offense or separate offenses (and with that, whether the value of the different items can be aggregated or not aggregated), the ultimate criterion is whether the separate takings were part of a single scheme or continuing course of conduct. If so, one offense must be charged and the values may be aggregated to determine whether the offense is a felony. To the extent that is not the case, the takings constitute separate offenses and aggregation of values is permissible only with respect to the takings included in each of the respective separate offenses. ... [T]he determination of whether multiple takings were part of a single scheme or course of conduct, for any purpose other than resolving the sufficiency of the charging document, is a factual matter that must be based on evidence. We observed there that the single larceny doctrine “rests on the notion that the separate takings are all part of a single larcenous scheme and a continuous larcenous act, and, when the evidence suffices to establish that fact, directly or by inference, most courts have had no problem applying the doctrine.” The question, then, is whether the State has sufficiently established beyond a reasonable doubt that there was, or, in this case, was not, a single larcenous scheme or course of conduct.”

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

3. “(1) whether a count in a charging document alleging that the defendant stole the property of several persons at the same time charges more than one offense and is therefore duplicitous; (2) whether a prosecution, conviction, or sentencing for stealing the property of one person bars, under double jeopardy principles, the prosecution, conviction, or sentencing for having stolen the property of another person at the same time; and (3) whether, when the property of different persons is stolen at the same time, the values of the separate items of property may be aggregated to raise the grade of the offense or the severity of the punishment, to the extent that either is dependent on the value of the property taken.”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage
   e.g. 185 Md. App. 580 - Webb v. State