804 So. 2d 1173 - Bowles v. State’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

5 federal appellate · 19 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 26 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.

1. “Strangulation of a conscious murder victim evinces that the victim suffered through the extreme anxiety of impending death as well as the perpetrator's utter indifference to such torture. Accordingly, this Court has consistently upheld the HAC aggravator in cases where a conscious victim was strangled.”

   3 later decisions quote this exact passage · from the majority
   e.g. 25 So. 3d 536 - Orme v. State · 851 So. 2d 678 - Belcher v. State

2. “On remand, the resentencing jury unanimously recommended death. In imposing the death penalty the trial court found the following five aggravating circumstances: (1) Bowles was convicted of two other capital felonies and two other violent felonies; (2) Bowles was on felony probation in 1994 when he committed the murder . . .; (3) the murder was committed during a robbery or an attempted robbery, and the murder was committed for pecuniary gain (merged into one factor); (4) the murder was heinous, atrocious, or cruel (HAC); and (5) the murder was cold, calculated, and premeditated (CCP). The trial court assigned tremendous weight to the prior violent capital felony convictions. On September 27, 1982, in Hillsborough County, Bowles was convicted of sexual battery and aggravated sexual battery. These offenses involved an extremely high degree of violence. . . . On July 18, 1991, Bowles was convicted in Volusia County of unarmed robbery. . . . On August 6, 1997, in Volusia County, Bowles was convicted of first-degree murder and armed burglary of a dwelling with a battery. . . . On October 10, 1996, in Nassau County, Bowles was convicted of first-degree murder. . . . The trial court assigned great weight to the HAC and CCP aggravators, significant weight to the robbery-pecuniary gain aggravator, and some weight to the fact that Bowles was on probation for robbery at the time of this murder. The trial court rejected the two statutory mitigators advanced by Bowles: (1) extreme emotio”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage · from the majority
   e.g. 979 So. 2d 182 - Bowles v. State

3. “Bowles approached [Roberts] from behind and hit him with a lamp. A struggle ensued during which Bowles strangled [Roberts] and stuffed a rag into his mouth. Bowles then emptied the victim's pockets, took his credit cards, money, keys, and wallet.”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage · from the majority
   e.g. Bowles v. Desantis