Commonwealth v. Olmande’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

8 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 8 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.

1. “[e]ven when evidence is introduced that would justify conviction for a lesser included offense, the defendant is not entitled to an instruction thereupon unless the proof on the 'elements differentiating the two crimes is sufficiently in dispute so that the jury may consistently find the defendant innocent of the greater and guilty of the lesser included offense.' " Commonwealth v. Olmande , 84 Mass. App. Ct. 231 , 238-239 (2013), quoting from Commonwealth v. Egerton , 396 Mass. 499 , 504 (1986). "That evidence, in ordinary circumstances, cannot be the mere possibility that the jury might not credit a portion of the Commonwealth's evidence, which of course they are always free to do.”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage
   e.g. Commonwealth v. Ayela

2. “talk about events that are extremely humiliating in front of a room of strangers ... and that's the truth, because she's telling the truth”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage
   e.g. Commonwealth v. Ward

3. “suggest the jury should believe a witness merely because the witness testified.”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage
   e.g. Commonwealth v. Ward