State v. Conway’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

6 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 6 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.

1. “Conway and Alexander were both convicted of aggravated rape under La.R.S. 14:42(C). That statute provides: "Whoever commits the crime of aggravated rape shall be punished by life imprisonment at hard labor without benefit of parole, probation, or suspension of sentence." La.R.S. 14:42(C). Conway and Alexander contend that, under the circumstances of this case, the mandatory sentence constitutes cruel, unusual, and excessive punishment under the Eighth Amendment of the United States Constitution and Article I § 20 of the 1974 Louisiana Constitution. In State v. Foley, 456 So.2d 979 (La.1984), the Louisiana Supreme Court expounded at length on the constitutionality of the mandatory sentence found in La.R.S. 14:42(C). The court stated: `The mandatory life sentence for aggravated rape is a valid exercise of the state legislature's prerogative to determine the length of sentence for crimes classified as felonies. State v. Prestridge, 399 So.2d 564 (La.1981); State v. Farria, 412 So.2d 577 (La.1982); and State v. Talbert, 416 So.2d 97 (La.1982). * * * * * * As to the gravity of the offense, the legal definition of aggravated rape in LSA-R.S. 14:42[A](2) is virtually identical to that of forcible rape. Distinctions are drawn based on the degree of force and the resistance of the victim. The jury determines the permissible punishment by a verdict which fits the crime by assessing the degree of force employed. State v. Willie, 422 So.2d 1128 (La.1982). * * * * * * Coker v. Georgia, 43”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage
   e.g. 657 So. 2d 429 - State v. Dunbar

2. “We need not consider whether each defendant's confession was directly admissible against his co-defendant, or whether it denied each the right of cross-examination and confrontation, nor whether the admission of the confessions was harmless error because the record reflects that neither defendant objected to the admission of either confession. In fact, the record shows that both defendants' counsel replied that there was no objection to each defendants' confessions being introduced into evidence and exhibited to the jury. La.C.Cr.P. Art. 841 states in pertinent part: "An irregularity or error cannot be availed of after verdict unless it was objected to at the time of occurrence...." No objection was raised by either defendant to the admission of the confessions of either at the time of trial; therefore, in the absence of a contemporaneous objection at time of the trial the defendants may not argue the issue on appeal. They have each waived such objections. La.C.Cr.P. Art. 841; State v. Hebert, 443 So.2d 613 (La.App. 3 Cir.1983), writ den., 444 So.2d 1215 (La.1984).”

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