Baker Case’s Empirical Analysis
1962
Citation profile
48 state decisions
How this case has been cited
Cited by 48 later decisions — most recently September 2016 · most notably Fabio v. CIVIL SERVICE COMMISSION, ETC. (1980), O'Gorman Appeal (1963)
48 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 Bell Appeal · Zeber Appeal · Thomas v. Connell · Gretton v. Pittsburgh · Caldwell v. Fairley
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 48 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.
“[P] rimary responsibility and decision as to the methods necessary to uphold police morale and efficiency and to maintain public confidence in the police department resides in the municipal officials. . . . The function of the courts is merely to make sure that just cause for dismissal exists, both factually and legally, and that the municipal officials have not abused their discretion in imposing the punishment in question. It is not our function to decide what we wonld have done under the circumstances if we had been Baker’s superiors. (Citations omitted.) (Emphasis in original.)”
3 later decisions quote this exact passage““Unbecoming conduct on the part of a municipal employee, especially a policeman or fireman, is any conduct which adversely affects the morale or efficiency of the Bureau to which he is assigned. It is indispensable to good government that a certain amount of discipline be maintained in a public service. Unbecoming conduct is also any conduct which has a tendency to destroy public respect for municipal employees and confidence in the operation of municipal services. It is not necessary that the alleged conduct be criminal in character nor that it be proved beyond a reasonable doubt.... It is elementary that the measure of proof to convict for a criminal offense is substantially different and greater than that necessary to support the dismissal of a municipal employee. It is sufficient that the complained of conduct and its attending circumstances be such as to offend publicly accepted standards of decency.””
2 later decisions quote this exact passage“It is necessary that both court and commission give due respect and weight to the action of the duly constituted municipal body which is authorized to act with respect to charges against members of the police force.” Id. at 384 (emphasis added). The Borough of Jenkintown Court relied on Zimmett and thus, Borough of Jenkintown is also not inapposite. Finally, contrary to the trial court and Majority's conclusion that substantial evidence did not”
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.