Commonwealth v. Ward’s Empirical Analysis
1990
Citation profile
51 state decisions
How this case has been cited
Cited by 51 later decisions — most recently January 2021 · most notably Commonwealth v. Walls (2007), Commonwealth v. Mouzon (2002)
51 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 Commonwealth v. Tuladziecki · Commonwealth v. Devers · Commonwealth v. Martin · Commonwealth v. Sessoms · Commonwealth v. Bethea
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 51 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.
“Traditionally, it has been recognized that the trial court is granted broad discretion in the determination of sentence. Deference is accorded to the trial court's pronouncement because of the perception that the trial court is in the best position to determine the proper penalty for a particular offense based upon an evaluation of the individual circumstances before it. Even with the promulgation of the sentencing guidelines, which was intended to structure the exercise of the sentencing power, that power is, notwithstanding, a function to be performed by the trial court. Where an appellate court determines that a sentence is illegal or otherwise improper, the proper remedy is to vacate the sentence and remand the matter to the trial court for sentencing in accordance with the ruling of the appellate court.”
1 later decision quote this exact passage“Where an appellate court determines that a sentence is illegal or otherwise improper, the proper remedy is to vacate the sentence and remand the matter to the trial court for sentencing in accordance with the ruling of the appellate court..... An appellate Court has no power to impose a sentence; that power is to be exercised exclusively by the trial court. The trial court’s right to this power can be usurped only by the legislature, which has the power to prescribe mandatory sentences. Since there was no mandatory sentence to be imposed for the offenses appellant had committed, the trial court had the discretion to impose a sentence within the statutory guidelines.”
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.