53 Va. App. 561 - Clanton v. Commonwealth’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

53 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 55 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.

1. “[w]hether the hypothesis of innocence is reasonable is itself a question of fact, subject to deferential appellate review. Merely because defendant’s theory of the case differs from that taken by the Commonwealth does not mean that every reasonable hypothesis consistent with his innocence has not been excluded. By finding the defendant guilty, therefore, the factfinder has found by a process of elimination that the evidence does not contain a reasonable theory of innocence.”

   3 later decisions quote this exact passage · from the majority
   e.g. Taylor v. Commonwealth · 57 Va. App. 495 - Ervin v. Commonwealth

2. “[w]hen considering a challenge to the sufficiency of the evidence on appeal, a reviewing court does not “ask itself whether it believes that the evidence at the trial established guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.” Jackson v. Virginia, 443 U.S. 307, 318-19 , 99 S.Ct. 2781 [2789], 61 L.Ed.2d 560 (1979) (emphasis in original; citation and internal quotation marks omitted). Instead, we ask only “ ‘whether, after viewing the evidence in the light most favorable to the prosecution, any rational trier of fact could have found the essential elements of the crime beyond a reasonable doubt.’ ” Maxwell v. Commonwealth, 275 Va. 437, 442 , 657 S.E.2d 499, 502 (2008) (quoting Jackson, 443 U.S. at 319 , 99 S.Ct. at 2789 ) (emphasis in original).”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage
   e.g. 62 Va. App. 55 - Vickie Marrs Belew v. Commonwealth of Virginia

3. “Nusbaum v. Berlin, 273 Va. 385 , 408, 641 S.E.2d 494, 507 (2007), because appellate courts have no authority”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage
   e.g. 57 Va. App. 658 - Holloway v. Commonwealth