Ex Parte State’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

3 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 3 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.

1. ““Gwin did not object to [the special judge’s] appointment before the judgment of conviction and sentence was entered. [The special judge], who was holding the office of circuit judge and was exercising the functions thereof, was a de facto officer when he accepted Gwin’s plea. ‘ “A de facto officer is one who exercises the duties of a de jure office under color of appointment or election....”’ Dixie Dairies v. Alabama State Milk Control Bd., 286 Ala. 198, 202 , 238 So.2d 551, 554 (1970) (quoting Ex parte Register, 257 Ala. 408, 413 , 60 So.2d 41, 46 (1952)). Section 36-1-2, Ala. Code 1975 , which protects the actions of defacto officers, reads: “ ‘The official acts of any person in possession of a public office and exercising the functions thereof shall be valid and binding as official acts in regard to all persons interested or affected thereby, whether such person is lawfully entitled to hold office or not and whether such person is lawfully qualified or not....’ “(Emphasis added.) The judgment Gwin appealed from is valid and remains intact as an action of a de facto officer protected by statute.””

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