Guerra 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 66 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.

1. “(1) "If in a capital murder trial where a defendant is convicted during the first part of the trial of capital murder of a police officer, do you believe that going into the second phase of the trial, the punishment phase of the trial, you would automatically answer the special issues in a manner that the Defendant would always receive the death penalty?" (2) "If during a capital murder trial you convict a defendant of capital murder of a police officer during the first part of a trial and you go into the second part of a trial and you have special issues to answer, do you believe that you could ever answer the special issues in a manner consistent with a defendant receiving a life sentence?" (3) "If in a given capital murder trial during the first phase of the trial you found the Defendant guilty of killing a police officer, during the second phase of the trial do you believe that you would have an open mind in reviewing the evidence, you would listen to all of the evidence in determining how you're going to answer the special issues during that phase of the trial?" (4) "If in a capital murder trial during the first part of the trial you find the Defendant guilty of capital murder of a police officer, do you feel that in answering Special Issue No. 1 during the second part of the trial, is there a probability that the defendant Ronald Howard, or that a defendant would commit criminal acts of violence that would constitute a continuing threat to society, would you always answ”

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

2. “If the witness was one who had no connection with either the State’s case-in-ehief or the defendant’s case-in-chief and who, because of a lack of personal knowledge regarding the offense, was not likely to be called as a witness, no abuse of discretion can be shown. On the other hand if the witness was one who had personal knowledge of the offense and who the party clearly anticipated calling to the stand, then the appellate court should then apply the Haas v. State, 498 S.W.2d 206 (Tex.Cr.App.1973) test as amended above and in Archer v. State, 703 S.W.2d 664 (Tex.Cr.App.1986).”

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

3. “The evidence shows that appellant and his companion armed themselves with pistols on the day of the offense. Without provocation, appellant cold-bloodedly shot Officer Harris three times in the head and then began shooting at various bystanders, including Herlinda Garcia and Vera Flores. While effecting his escape, appellant also killed Jose Armijo, Sr., who was innocently sitting in his car with his two small children. Clearly the facts of this brutal and heinous offense are sufficient in and of themselves to justify the jury’s affirmative answer to the second special issue.”

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