Fields v. State’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

2 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 2 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.

1. “[t]here would perhaps be merit in the [S]tate’s contention of waiver of counsel if all there was in the record were the proceedings up to the time of completion of the voir dire examination which show that [the defendant] was offered counsel, declined counsel, and stated he was ready for trial. There is some deficiency, however, in the explanation of the right of counsel in that [the defendant] was not fully apprised of the benefit of counsel at trial and the perils of pro se defense. But if there was an effective waiver of the right to counsel up to the time the voir dire examination of the jury was completed it was thereafter clearly withdrawn by [the defendant] by his words, ‘Under these circumstances here, it looks like I’m going to have to have somebody besides me’ and ‘so I think maybe I’d better have somebody.’ The jury had not been sworn and for that reason it was not too late to appoint counsel as the court stated to [the defendant]. From a reading of the entire record it is apparent that [the defendant] was confused as to the charge against him, and that he had no learning in the law. No defenses were asserted by him other than his denial that he was the person who, in conjunction with another, mulcted the prosecution witness. It was only after [the defendant] conferred with the [State], who, as the record shows, advised him that [it] was going to prosecute him to the fullest, that [the defendant] became apprehensive and told the court that he was going to have to h”

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

2. “the way I can see it here now, the way the papers and stuff you’ve got, I don’t think it’s going to do a whole lot of good for me to have an appointed attorney and I definitely haven’t the money to hire one from somewhere else.... So if there’s any possible way, I’d like to just get this either dismissed or, or withdraw my motion, one of the two, because I don’t have no money to hire no attorney and ... I don’t believe I’d want a court appointed attorney at this time, I don’t believe.”

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