State v. Starks’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

20 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 21 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.

1. “It is sufficient ... that the evidence or lack thereof creates a reasonable doubt as to any element of the crime.”

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

2. “(1) A person is justified in threatening or using force against another when and to the extent that he reasonably believes that such force is necessary to defend himself or a third person against such other’s imminent use of unlawful force; however, a person is justified in using force which is intended or likely to cause death or serious bodily injury only if he reasonably believes that the force is necessary to prevent death or serious bodily injury to himself or a third person, or to prevent the commission of a forcible felony.”

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

3. “defendant in this case armed himself and went to a location where he knew he would find the deceased does not of itself deprive him of his right to self-defense”

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