State v. Patten’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

9 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 9 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.

1. “[W]e hold that a warrantless search of a vehicle for contraband, that is constitutionally permissible under the long-established ‘automobile exception,’ may be validly extended to a container, found in the vehicle, that is capable of containing the contraband. In this regard we find no reason to construe article I, section 5 of the State Constitution any differently than the fourth amendment of the federal constitution.”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage
   e.g. State v. Ireland

2. “the scope of the warrantless search authorized by [the automobile exception recognized in Carroll,] is no broader and no narrower than a magistrate could legitimately authorize by warrant. If probable cause justifies the search of a lawfully stopped vehicle, it justifies the search of every part of the vehicle and its contents that may conceal the object of the search.”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage
   e.g. State v. Bouchles