Spaulding v. State’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

2 federal appellate · 13 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 17 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.

1. “We conclude that the Burgett rule against use of un-counseled convictions “to prove guilt” was intended to prohibit their use “to impeach credibility”, for the obvious purpose and likely effect of impeaching the defendant’s credibility is to imply, if not prove, guilt. Even if such prohibition was not originally contemplated, we fail to discern any distinction which would allow such invalid convictions to be used to impeach credibility. The absence of counsel impairs the reliability of such convictions just as much when used to impeach as when used as direct proof of guilt. Moreover, such use compounds the original denial of the constitutional right just as surely as does use “to prove guilt or enhance punishment”. Finally, defendant’s privilege to testify or not to testify ... is seriously* impaired if the price of testifying is the potential admission of invalid and. possibly unreliable convictions which could not otherwise be admitted. We therefore hold that Burgett prevents the use of uncounseled convictions for purposes of impeachment. [Footnote omitted.] . . . Instructions limiting the use to which the jury may properly put uncounseled convictions are insufficient safeguards when such convictions are invalid and obtained in violation of a specific constitutional right.”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage · from the majority
   e.g. 12 Wash. App. 328 - State v. Murray

2. “would have a substantial effect upon the jury's deliberations.”

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