State v. Pilcher’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

15 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 15 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.

1. “The Eighth and Fourteenth Amendments to the U.S. Constitution and Article I, Sec. 20 of the Louisiana Constitution prohibit the imposition of a penalty that is cruel and unusual. In Solem v. Helm, 463 U.S. 277 , 103 S.Ct. 3001 , 77 L.Ed.2d 637 (1983), the United States [S]upreme Court overturned a life sentence ordered to be served without benefit of parole, probation or suspension of sentence, imposed upon a defendant convicted for the seventh time for felony check fraud. In so holding, the Court stated: In sum, we hold as a matter of principle that a criminal sentence must be proportionate to the crime for which the defendant has been convicted. Reviewing courts, of course, should grant substantial deference to the broad authority that legislatures necessarily possess in determining the types and limits of punishments for crimes, as well as to the discretion that trial courts possess in sentencing convicted criminals. But no penalty is per se constitutional. The Court went on to state that whether a given sentence is proportional to a crime depends upon: [O]bjective criteria, including (I) the gravity of the offense and the harshness of the penalty; (ii) the sentences imposed on other criminals in the same jurisdiction; and (iii) the sentences imposed for commission of the same crime in other jurisdictions. The Louisiana Supreme Court in State v. Foley, 456 So.2d 979 (La.1984), conducted this analysis of the mandatory life-without-benefit sentence imposed on a 15-year-old c”

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

2. “We note that under some circumstances, consecutive life sentences have been upheld as not excessive. State v. Jett, 419 So.2d 844 (La.1982); State v. Williams, 445 So.2d 1264 (La.App. 3 Cir.1984), writ denied 449 So.2d 1346 (La.1984); State v. Dennard, 482 So.2d 1067 (La. App. 3 Cir.1986); State v. Barker, 628 So.2d 168 (La.App. 2 Cir.1993), writ denied 93-3194 (La.3/25/94), 635 So.2d 236 . In light of the unusually heinous nature of these offenses, the trial court's finding that concurrent sentences would deprecate the seriousness of the killings, and that the sentences should be imposed consecutively is correct and will not be altered.”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage
   e.g. 747 So. 2d 164 - State v. Hamilton