State v. Smith’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

6 federal appellate · 26 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 32 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.

1. “If you unanimously decide that a sufficient mitigating circumstance or circumstances exist which outweigh the aggravating circumstance or circumstances found by you to exist, then you- must return a verdict fixing defendant’s punishment at imprisonment for life by the Division of Corrections without eligibility for probation or parole until he has served a minimum of fifty years of his sentence.”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage
   e.g. Grubbs v. Delo

2. “You are not compelled to fix death as the punishment even if you do not find the existence of one or more mitigating circumstances sufficient to outweigh the aggravating circumstance or circumstances which you find to exist. You must consider all the circumstances in deciding whether to assess and declare the punishment at death. Whether that is to be your final decision rests with you.”

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

3. “plain errors affecting substantial rights may be considered in the discretion of the court when the court finds that manifest injustice or miscarriage of justice has resulted therefrom.” 3 .See, e.g., State v. Smith, 781 S.W.2d 761, 771 (Mo. banc 1989), vacated on other grounds, 495 U.S. 916 , 110 S.Ct. 1944 , 109 L.Ed.2d 306 (1990) (defendant referred to as”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage · from the concurrence
   e.g. State v. Coutee