State v. Harding’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

4 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 4 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.

1. “[t]o test causation, Missouri courts will often look at the underlying felony, generally, as well as at the facts of the particular case. " Id. at 369 (emphasis added). The court noted that "[a] death is foreseeable if the underlying felony and killing were a part of a continuous transaction, 'closely connected in time, place and causal relation.' " Id. (quoting State v. Manuel , 443 S.W.3d 669 , 677 (Mo. App. W.D. 2014) ). "Missouri's felony-murder law applies to all felonies, and also allows for the circumstances of the case to guide whether the death is the 'natural and proximate result of the commission of the [underlying felony].' " Id. at 371 (quoting State v. Scroggs , 521 S.W.3d 649 , 656 (Mo. App. W.D. 2017) ). The court noted that "the clear legislative intent restricts our courts from considering the inherent dangerousness (or lack thereof) of the underlying felony”

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

2. “Generally, a defendant may introduce evidence tending to show that another person committed the charged offense, unless the probative value of the evidence is substantially outweighed by its costs, such as undue delay, prejudice or confusion.”

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

3. “When properly preserved, a trial court's decision denying a motion for a continuance will be reversed only if there is a strong showing that the trial court abused its discretion and that prejudice resulted from the denial of the motion.”

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