Commonwealth v. Saletino’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

19 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 19 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.

1. “A missing witness instruction is appropriate when a party 'has knowledge of a person who can be located and brought forward, who is friendly to, or at least not hostilely disposed toward, the party, and who can be expected to give testimony of distinct importance to the case,' and the party, without explanation, fails to call the person as a witness.”

   4 later decisions quote this exact passage
   e.g. 95 Mass. App. Ct. 406 - Commonwealth v. Mitchell · 92 Mass. App. Ct. 1130 - Commonwealth v. Pino

2. “The decision whether to provide a missing witness instruction to the jury is within the discretion of the trial judge, and will not be reversed unless the decision was manifestly unreasonable.”

   3 later decisions quote this exact passage
   e.g. 95 Mass. App. Ct. 406 - Commonwealth v. Mitchell · 92 Mass. App. Ct. 1130 - Commonwealth v. Pino

3. “Where 'a witness is equally available to parties on both sides of a dispute, no inference should be drawn against either side for failing to call the witness.'”

   2 later decisions quote this exact passage
   e.g. 92 Mass. App. Ct. 1128 - Commonwealth v. Arias · 92 Mass. App. Ct. 1130 - Commonwealth v. Pino