McCleskey v. Zant’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

18 federal appellate · 1 district · 2 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 38 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.

1. “... statistics are not irrefutable; they come in infinite variety and, like any other kind of evidence, they may be rebutted. In short, their usefulness depends on all of the surrounding facts and circumstances.”

   2 later decisions quote this exact passage · from the concurrence
   e.g. Malone v. City of Fenton · 592 F. Supp. 1135 - In Re Malone

2. “Members of the Jury, I charge you that a person commits murder when he unlawfully and with malice aforethought, either express or implied, caused the death of another human being. Express malice is that deliberate intention unlawfully to take away the life of a fellow creature which is manifested by external circumstances capable of proof. Malice shall be implied where no considerable provocation appears and where all the circumstances of the killing show an abandoned and malignant heart. Before you would be authorized to find the defendant guilty of the offense of murder, you must find and believe beyond a reasonable doubt that the defendant did with malice aforethought, either express or implied, cause the death of Larry W. Stevens, Sr. I charge you that if you find and believe that at any time prior to the date this indictment was returned into this court that the defendant did in the Coun ty of Richmond, State of Georgia, with malice aforethought kill and murder Larry W. Stevens, Sr., in the way and manner set forth in the indictment, then you would be authorized to find the defendant guilty of murder. Members of the Jury, I further charge you in that regard that malice in its legal sense is not necessarily ill will or hatred. It is the unlawful, deliberate intention to kill a human being without justification or mitigation or excuse, which intention must exist at the time of the killing. It is not necessary, however, that this unlawful, deliberate intention should exist ”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage · from the concurrence
   e.g. 592 F. Supp. 228 - Stephens v. Kemp

3. “Q: [by prosecutor]: Mr. Evans, have I promised you anything for testifying today? A: No, sir, you ain’t. Q: You do have an escape charge still pending, is that correct? A: Yes, sir. I’ve got one, but really it ain’t no escape, what the peoples out there tell me, because something went wrong out there so I just went home. I stayed at home and when I called the man and told him that I would be a little late coming in, he placed me on escape charge and told me there wasn’t no use of me coming back, and I just stayed on at home and he come and picked me up. Q: Are you hoping that perhaps you won’t be prosecuted for that escape? A: Yeah, I hope I don’t, but I don’t— what they tell me, they ain’t going to charge me with escape no way. Q: Have you asked me to try to fix it so you wouldn’t get charged with escape? A: No, sir. Q: Have I told you I would try to fix it for you? A: No, sir.”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage · from the dissent
   e.g. McCleskey v. Kemp