People v. Harding’s Empirical Analysis
1884
Citation profile
2 district · 30 state decisions
How this case has been cited
Cited by 34 later decisions — most recently June 2023 · most notably State v. . Harris (1940), Commonwealth v. Kentucky Jockey Club (1931)
2 district · 30 state decisions — followed in 14 states
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 Finley v. State · People v. Barrett & Ward · People v. Jones · State v. Williams · Black v. State
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 34 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.
““But it is urged that the clause is meaningless unless the effect is given to it for which the prosecution contends. In this we do not agree. It may have meaning and effect, tliofigh different to that tlie prosecution contends for. And in seeking for its real meaning we must take into consideration • the times and circumstances under which the state Constitution was formed— the general spirit of the times and the prevailing sentiments among the people. Every Constitution has a history of its own which is likely to be more or less peculiar, and, unless interpreted in the light of this history, is liable to be made to express purposes which were never within the minds of the people in agreeing to it. This the court must keep in mind when called upon to interpret it; for their duty is to enforce the law which the people have made, and not some other law which the words of the Constitution may possibly be made to express.””
3 later decisions quote this exact passage“‘ ‘ This case is therefore to be determined on common-law rules; and the respondent relies upon People v. Jones, 48 Mich. 554 ( 12 N. W. 848 ), as ruling it. That case is not very fully reported. The record showed that the respondent was put on trial before a jury duly impaneled and sworn; that the prosecution went into the proofs and rested; that thereupon the jury was discharged, and a new information filed against the respondent for the same offense, upon which he was tried and convicted. The proceedings on the first information were pleaded as a bar to the second, and this court sustained the bar. No reason appeared for discharging the jury, and the discharge stood upon the record as an act of the court, not shown to have been assented to or compelled by any necessity. On each of the trials appearing in the record before us, the jury reported to the court an inability to agree, and were immediately discharged by its order. It is conceded on behalf of respondent that, when it is found impossible for the jury to agree, the judge may lawfully discharge them for that reason, and the discharge is not an acquittal; but it is contended that the record must show that the judge found that a necessity for the discharge existed; and upon the validity of this contention the case must turn. ‘ ‘ There is no doubt the report of the jury that they cannot agree is the proper evidence upon which the judge should act in determining upon the impossibility of their reaching a verdict. But he ”
2 later decisions quote this exact passage“It was meant to give a privilege not existing at the common law; it had no purpose to take away any which before existed.”
1 later decision quote this exact passagee.g. People v. Davis
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.