Commonwealth v. Stephens’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

29 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 29 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.

1. “In reviewing the denial of a motion to suppress, we accept the motion judge's subsidiary findings of fact absent clear error, and conduct an independent review of the judge's ultimate findings and conclusions of law.”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage
   e.g. 92 Mass. App. Ct. 1130 - Commonwealth v. Castillo

2. “The officers found, in [the defendant's] lap, clear plastic bags with the tops knotted and corners cut off, with additional altered plastic bags in his pocket,”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage
   e.g. 93 Mass. App. Ct. 469 - Commonwealth v. Alvarado

3. “was justified in 'opening the door, securing the defendant's hands and ordering the defendant from the car for a pat frisk limited to finding weapons'”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage
   e.g. State v. Andrade-Reyes