Saranchak v. Beard’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

6 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 17 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.

1. “consider[ ] the effect the new evidence would have had on th[e] particular judge ... rather than considering, more abstractly, the effect the same evidence would have had on an unspecified, objective factfinder, as required by Strickland "). We need not dwell here on the many reasons why Strickland 's prejudice inquiry does not and should not turn on the selective, unsworn, after-the-fact comments of trial jurors. 16 We simply reaffirm that, given "the clear directions in Hill and Strickland [,] ... the likely outcome of a trial should be assessed objectively, without regard for the idiosyncrasies of the particular decisionmaker.”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage · from the majority
   e.g. Garner v. Lee

2. “Saranchak [had] acted as if the officers questioning him were drill sergeants, responding to their questions with formal Tes, Sir’ or ‘No, Sir’ answers. He soon, admitted that he had been present at Stella’s house, but then rebuffed the officers’ follow-up questions by explaining that he was part of a classified military mission. After further questioning, he characterized the scene at Stella’s house as ‘not a pretty sight.’ Saranchak eventually admitted to the state trooper interrogating him that he had shot Edmund.”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage · from the majority
   e.g. Saranchak v. Secretary, Pennsylvania Department of Corrections