488 So. 2d 13 - Dalton v. State’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

5 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 5 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.

1. “" 'The Supreme Court in Chapman v. California , 386 U.S. 18 , 87 S.Ct. 824 , 17 L.Ed.2d 705 (1967), held that a conviction need not be reversed if the constitutional error was harmless. The purpose of the harmless error rule is to avoid "setting aside convictions for small errors or defects that have little, if any, likelihood of having changed the result." Id. at 22 , 87 S.Ct. at 827 . This is precisely such a case.' United States v. Satterfield , 743 F.2d 827 , 847 (11th Cir. 1984), cert. denied, 471 U.S. 1117 , 105 S.Ct. 2362 , 86 L.Ed.2d 262 (1985) *Page 996 (evidence against accused so extensive that admission of illegally seized shotgun was harmless beyond a reasonable doubt even though shotgun constitutes further evidence of accused's complicity in kidnapping); United States v. Gramlich , 551 F.2d 1359 , 1363 (5th Cir.), cert. denied, 434 U.S. 866 , 98 S.Ct. 201 , 54 L.Ed.2d 141 (1977) (admission of illegally seized passport and airline ticket to Colombia harmless where the accused was apprehended red-handed with a large quantity of marijuana). Here, the murder weapon and the photographs were not 'crucial' to the case against the defendant. Compare United States v. Character , 568 F.2d 442 , 445 (5th Cir. 1978). 'The admission of improper evidence to establish an undisputed fact is harmless error.' Cassidy v. State , 369 So.2d 310 , 312 (Ala.Cr.App. 1979). See also Roberson v. State , 217 Ala. 696 , 699 , 117 So. 412 , 415 (1928) (admission of unconnected bullet found ”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage
   e.g. 642 So. 2d 989 - Oryang v. State