53 So. 3d 1104 - Eugene v. State’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

16 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 16 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.

1. “[t]he basis of the holding [in Sparkman ] was that the probative value of the detective’s words was “substantially outweighed by the danger of unfair prejudice” or “misleading the jury” under section 90.403, Florida Statutes (2005). See Shrader v. State, 962 So.2d 369, 371 (Fla. 4th DCA 2007) (recognizing that basis of holding in Sparkman was that detective’s statements were “blatantly prejudicial”). The danger of unfair prejudice in Sparkman was that the jury might have taken the defendant’s responses to the detective’s detailed and speculative narrative — silence and “Uh huh” — as admissions of guilt. Not everything a detective says to a defendant during a recorded interrogation is unfairly prejudicial under 90.403. The Supreme Court has recognized that a jury may hear an interrogating detective’s statements about a crime when they provoke a relevant response from the defendant being questioned. For example, confronting a defendant with a codefendant’s statements may properly be used “as provocation” to observe a defendant’s reactions. See Jackson v. State, 18 So.3d 1016, 1031-32 (Fla.2009). Such statements may be heard by the jury to “give context to the interview.” McWatters v. State, 36 So.3d 613 (Fla.2010). When placed in “their proper context,” an interrogating detective’s statements to a suspect could be understood by a “rational jury” to be “techniques” used by law enforcement officers to secure confessions. Id. at 637 (quoting Worden v. State, 603 So.2d 581, 583 (Fl”

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

2. “Sparkman was a manslaughter case involving the death of a toddler. Id. at 254 . Other than the defendant, there were no direct witnesses to the events leading up to the child’s death. See id. at 254-57 . The case was based largely upon after-the-fact testimony from the child’s father, an emergency medical technician, and two medical examiners, one of whom testified that traumatic, and not accidental injury was the cause of the child’s death. Id. In a tape recorded statement with a detective, the defendant maintained that she did not do anything that would have hurt the baby, that she just shook her a little to get her to wake up from a seizure. Id. at 256-57 . During the statement, the detective launched into an extensive recitation of his theory of the case, outlining his version of the facts of the crime. Id. at 257-58 . The defendant responded to the detective’s accusations with “Uh huh” and with silence.-”

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

3. “A recorded police interrogation of the defendant has been introduced into evidence in this trial. During the interrogation, any statements made by the police interrogator are not to be considered by you jurors as evidence of the defendant’s guilt. The statements made by the police interrogator during the interview of the defendant have not been introduced into evidence to prove the truth of the matters asserted in those statements. In fact, the statements made by the police interrogator during the interrogation of the defendant may be false and misleading. It is permissible for a police officer conducting an interrogation of a defendant to make false and misleading state ments to the defendant in order to further the aims of the interrogation. However, it is not permissible for you jurors to rely on such police interrogator’s statements as proof of the defendant’s guilt.”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage
   e.g. 145 So. 3d 963 - Michael Roundtree v. State