Nickelson v. People’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

34 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 34 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.

1. “"No person shall be deprived of life, liberty or property without due process of law.””

   3 later decisions quote this exact passage
   e.g. State v. Laude · Galesburg Construction Co. of Wyoming v. Board of Trustees of Memorial Hospital of Converse County

2. “"Statutes are presumed to be constitutional unless affirmatively shown to be otherwise, and one who would deny the constitutionality of a statute has a heavy burden. The alleged unconstitutionality must be clearly and exactly shown beyond any reasonable doubt. Stephenson v. Mitchell ex rel. Workmen's Compensation Department, Wyo. 1977, 569 P.2d 95, 97 ; see also cases digested at West's Wyoming Digest, Constitutional Law. One who assails a classification must carry the burden of showing that it does not rest on a reasonable basis, but is essentially arbitrary, and if any state of facts can be reasonably conceived which sustain the classification, such facts will be assumed. Mountain Fuel Supply Co. v. Emerson, Wyo. 1978, 578 P.2d 1351, 1355 ; McGowan v. State of Maryland, 1961, 366 U.S. 420 , 81 S.Ct. 1101 , 6 L.Ed.2d 393 ; Carmichael v. Southern Coal & Coke Co., 1937, 301 U.S. 495, 509 , 57 S.Ct. 868, 872 , 81 L.Ed. 1245 , 109 A.L.R. 1327 . * * *" Nickelson v. People, Wyo., 607 P.2d 904, 910 (1980). "Courts have a duty to uphold the constitutionality of statutes which the legislature has enacted if that is at all possible, and any doubt must be resolved in favor of constitutionality. Witzenburger v. State, Wyo. 1978, 575 P.2d 1100 , 1112; Lund v. Schrader, Wyo. 1971, 492 P.2d 202, 206 . * * *" Washakie County School District Number One v. Herschler, Wyo., 606 P.2d 310, 319 (1980), reh. denied, cert. denied 449 U.S. 824 , 101 S.Ct. 86 , 66 L.Ed.2d 28 (1980).”

   2 later decisions quote this exact passage
   e.g. Meyer v. Kendig · Hays v. State Ex Rel. Wyoming Workers' Compensation Division

3. “(1) Type of offense. Is the offense one which is traditionally or by its very nature criminal? If not, it may be considered to be civil. (2) Penalty. What is the penalty and how severe is it? This has been isolated as the most significant factor, but it is by no means conclusive. Imprisonment may not be used as punishment for a civil offense. The imposition of a fine or penalty may be entirely consistent with an offense being civil in nature. On the other hand, a fine or penalty may become so severe in the context of the circumstances in which it is imposed that the offense becomes criminal in nature and the constitutional protections associated with criminal prosecutions are necessarily called into play. An arbitrary dollar figure cannot be rigidly set as the touchstone. Rather, the amount of the fine must be weighed in view of all the circumstances relevant to the offense in question. (3) Collateral Consequences. What other consequences are in the offing for the defendant in addition to the fine? Are there such collateral consequences and are they regulatory in nature or do they impose additional punishment? (4) Punitive Significance. This is perhaps the most difficult factor to weigh and the element of subjectivity must be scrupulously avoided. We must inquire whether the offense is one primarily motivated by punitive intent. Is the statute plainly one that inflicts “punishment”? Does the judgment have stigmatizing or condemnatory significance? (5) Arrest and Detention. Ar”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage
   e.g. Glasrud v. City of Laramie