Small v. State’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

5 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 5 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.

1. “Although the law is clear that a defendant is presumed to know statutory law, the State cannot convincingly argue that a defendant is presumed to know what every court order ever issued prohibits. The State did not satisfy its obligation, as alleged, by simply establishing that the appellant knowingly and intentionally went near and to the household prohibited by the order, with or without knowledge of the existence of the order in question. For the appellant to have knowingly and intentionally violated the order, it was necessary for the appellant to have been aware of the order, and since the burden is upon the State to establish its charge, the State was required to furnish this evidence. [[Image here]] Unless a defendant is somehow aware of what he is prohibited from doing by a specific court order, he cannot be guilty of knowingly and intentionally violating that court order. We hold that this is an essential element of this offense, and the State is required to prove that the appellant “knowingly and intentionally” violated the court order in question beyond a reasonable doubt.”

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