McCary v. State’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

61 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 61 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.

1. “the defendant must show deficient performance: representation that fell below an objective standard of reasonableness, committing errors so serious that the defendant did not have the 'counsel' guaranteed by the Sixth Amendment.”

   6 later decisions quote this exact passage
   e.g. William E. Mays v. State of Indiana · James E. Hinkle v. State of Indiana

2. “We afford great deference to counsel's discretion to choose strategy and tactics, and strongly presume that counsel provided adequate assistance and exercised reasonable professional judgment in all significant decisions.”

   2 later decisions quote this exact passage
   e.g. Clancy v. State · Witt v. State

3. ““When the claim of ineffective assistance is directed at appellate counsel for failing fully and properly to raise and support a claim of ineffective assistance of trial counsel, a defendant faces a compound burden on postconviction. The postconviction court must conclude that appellate counsel’s performance was deficient and that, but for the deficiency of appellate counsel, trial counsel’s performance would have been found deficient and prejudicial. Thus, [the petitioner’s] burden before the postconviction court was to establish the two elements of ineffective assistance of counsel separately as to both trial and appellate counsel.””

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