Fortenberry v. State’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

22 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 23 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.

1. “The witness MICHAEL VINCENT KAISER, is an accomplice, if an offense was committed, and you cannot convict the Defendant upon his testimony unless you first believe that his testimony is true and shows that the Defendant is guilty as charged, and then you cannot convict the Defendant upon said testimony unless you further believe that there is other testimony in the case, outside of the evidence of the said MICHAEL VINCENT KAISER, tending to connect the Defendant with the offense committed, if you find that an offense was committed, and the corroboration is not sufficient if it merely shows the commission of the offense, but it must tend to connect the Defendant with its commission, and then from all of the evidence you must believe beyond a reasonable doubt that the Defendant is guilty of the offense charged against him. An accomplice, as the term is here used, means any person connected with the crime charged.”

   2 later decisions quote this exact passage
   e.g. Holladay v. State · Holladay v. State

2. “"The Defendant respectfully objects to paragraph `5' of the propsed (sic) charge further for the reason (as to `accomplice testimony' of the accomplice witness Charles Moore) for the reason that such proposed charge is insufficient in law as to the manner and how Moore's testimony is to be corroborated, and how such is to be corroborated and to what extent such is to be corroborated as to the facts that make this a case of `capital murder' against the Defendant CHARLES COUNTY, and the proposed charge or instruction herein complained of fails to advise and apprise the jury as to the amount of and nature and extent of corroboration that is required by law, as is required by law, particularly 19.02 and 19.03(a)(3), Texas Penal Code, and other applicable law, including the law of presumption of innocence and burden of proof."”

   2 later decisions quote this exact passage
   e.g. County v. State · County v. State

3. “"A conviction cannot be had upon the testimony of an accomplice unless corroborated by other evidence tending to connect the defendant with the offense committed; and the corroboration is not sufficient if it merely shows the commission of the offense."”

   2 later decisions quote this exact passage
   e.g. Gardner v. State · Romero v. State