Bone v. State’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

227 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 227 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.

1. “A vague, inarticulate sense that counsel could have provided a better defense is not a legal basis for finding counsel constitutionally incompetent.... [A] defendant must prove, by a preponderance of the evidence, that there is, in fact, no plausible professional reason for a specific act or omission.”

   5 later decisions quote this exact passage · from the majority
   e.g. DeLeon v. State · Jackson v. State

2. “First, the defendant must show that counsel’s performance was deficient. This requires showing that counsel made errors so serious that counsel was not functioning as the “counsel” guaranteed the defendant by the Sixth Amendment. Second, the defendant must show that the deficient performance prejudiced the defense. This requires showing that counsel’s errors were so serious as to deprive the defendant of a fair trial, a trial whose result is reliable.”

   4 later decisions quote this exact passage · from the majority
   e.g. Rickie Wayne Selby v. State · Weatherly v. State

3. “We are once again asked whether an appellate court may reverse a conviction on ineffective assistance of counsel grounds when counsel's actions or omissions may have been based on tactical decisions, but the record contains no specific explanation for counsel's decisions. Once again we answer that question `no'.”

   3 later decisions quote this exact passage · from the majority
   e.g. Storr v. State · Labonte v. State