51 Va. App. 369 - Johnson v. Commonwealth’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

6 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 6 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.

1. “Trial judges necessarily require a great deal of latitude in scheduling trials. Not the least of their problems is that of assembling the witnesses, lawyers, and jurors at the same place at the same time, and this burden counsels against continuances except for compelling reasons. Consequently, broad discretion must be granted trial courts on matters of continuances; only an unreasoning and arbitrary “insistence upon expeditiousness in the face of a justifiable request for delay” violates the right to the assistance of counsel.”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage
   e.g. 63 Va. App. 92 - George Wesley Huguely, V v. Commonwealth of Virginia

2. “In London , ... we reversed a trial court’s denial of the defendant’s continuance motion when the defendant’s family retained a private attorney sixteen days before trial, the retained attorney notified the trial court twelve days before trial, and the trial court had granted no prior continuances at the defendant’s request. 49 Va.App. at 239 , 638 S.E.2d at 725 . London , unlike [Johnson ], did not involve a last minute request for a continuance, and the situation in that case did not require “exceptional circumstances.””

   1 later decision quote this exact passage
   e.g. 55 Va. App. 435 - Brailey v. Commonwealth