842 So. 2d 1126 - State v. Morgan’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. “In the present case, the district court did not abuse its discretion in admonishing the jury rather than granting a mistrial when a police officer indicated that the cocaine in defendant’s possession was a “distribution amount.” Although the court of appeal rested its decision on jurisprudence in this Court precluding expert testimony tantamount to an opinion that the defendant is guilty of the crime charged, in those cases the trial courts overruled defense objections to the contested expert testimony, and thus the respective juries were allowed to consider what should have been inadmissible evidence. In the present case, the trial court sustained the defense objection and admonished the jury that it, not the expert witness, remained the ultimate finder of fact. Moreover, in the instant case, it cannot be said that the expert’s comments were so prejudicial as to warrant a mistrial. In the present case a police officer, who had received the defendant’s pager number from a reliable confidential informant, arranged a drug sale with either the defendant or a co-defendant. When the defendant appeared at the agreed-to location at the scheduled time of the sale, police arrested him, and found approximately $1,500 worth of cocaine in three separate bags. Given the pre-arranged drug deal, the amount of cocaine, and the manner in which it was packaged, the defendant cannot show that the expert witness’s testimony prejudiced him. In these circumstances, the district court did not abuse”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage
   e.g. 52 So. 3d 110 - State v. Johnson

2. “Ladies and Gentleman, the defense has requested that I give you an admonition, which is basically a charge to correct something that may be determinative when you go in there to reach a verdict. The role of experts in criminal cases is to provide, as I mentioned to you, jurors with a basis of knowledge and background and information on a particular subject. Your role is that of the ultimate fact finder. I will tell you that you are the ultimate deciders of what facts have been proven and what facts have not been proven. You may not allow the testimony of any expert witness, including Sergeant Glasser to be determinative on the issue of intent to distribute. So you and you alone are to decide that issue, what constitutes the issue of intent to distribute, whether or not the defendant had the intent to distribute narcotics. So anything that may have been said during the course of the testimony by an expert witness including but not limited to Sergeant Glasser regarding the issue of intent to distribute you are to disregard. You alone are going to make that decision, whether or not those requisite elements have been met.”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage
   e.g. 52 So. 3d 110 - State v. Johnson