ABC Security Service, Inc. v. Miller’s Empirical Analysis
1974
Citation profile
12 state decisions
How this case has been cited
Cited by 12 later decisions — most recently February 2017
12 state decisions
Later decisions citing this case, by decade. The current decade is in progress, and our corpus holds fewer opinions from the most recent years, so the latest bars are undercounted — not a real decline.
Relationships
Relies on Ex Parte Williams · Vermont Salvage Corp. v. Village of St. Johnsbury · McKaig v. Kansas City · Frank v. Wabash Railroad Company · Marshall v. Kansas City
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 12 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.
“[A]n ordinance ... which vests discretion in administrative officials must, generally stated, include standards for their guidance in order to be constitutional ... The courts recognize three general exceptions to the strict rule which requires the inclusion of standards in an ordinance or statute when a delegation is made to an administrative body: (1) where the ordinance or statute deals with situations which require the vesting of some discretion in public officials, and where it is difficult or impracticable to lay down a definite, comprehensive rule; (2) where the discretion relates to the administration of a police regulation and is necessary to protect the public morals, health, safety and general welfare; (3) where personal fitness is a factor to be taken into consideration, (citations omitted).”
2 later decisions quote this exact passage“A policeman is the legal equivalent of the “watchman” at common law who possessed the power of arrest now vested in what we refer to as peace officers. “Police power” is not synonymous with “police force,” and a city may supplement the police protection which it provides by authorizing, under appropriate regulations, private persons to perform some of its police functions. In our opinion this is what was done in this ease. By licensing Gillispie as a private watchman the City of St. Louis delegated to him and invested him with the authority, but as limited in the license, of a “watchman” as that term was known at common law or of a policeman as that term is now known, (citations omitted).”
1 later decision quote this exact passage
How this case has been treated — in progress
Whether each later court followed, distinguished, criticized, or overruled this decision. The treatment classification (task #35) runs highest-cited cases first and lights up here as it reaches this one.