Parker v. State’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

46 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 48 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.

1. “[w]here the victim is not a police officer, `the evidence supporting the avoid arrest aggravator must prove that the sole or dominant motive for killing was to eliminate a witness,' and `mere speculation on the part of the state that witness elimination was the dominant motive behind a murder cannot support the avoid arrest aggravator.'”

   3 later decisions quote this exact passage · from the majority
   e.g. Calhoun v. State · 983 So. 2d 505 - Bevel v. State

2. “Generally, in reviewing a trial court’s ruling on a motion to suppress, this Court accords a presumption of correctness to the trial court’s findings of historical fact, reversing only if the findings are not supported by competent, substantial evidence, but reviews de novo “whether the application of the law to the historical facts establishes an adequate basis for the trial court’s ruling.” Connor v. State, 803 So.2d 598, 608 (Fla.2001), ce rt. denied, 535 U.S. 1103 , 122 S.Ct. 2308 , 152 L.Ed.2d 1063 (2002). However, this deference to the trial court’s findings of fact does not fully apply when the findings are based on evidence other than live testimony. Cf. Thompson v. State, 548 So.2d 198 , 204 n. 5 (Fla.1989) (“[T]he clearly erroneous standard does not apply with full force in those instances in which the determination turns in whole or in part, not upon live testimony, but on the meaning of transcripts, depositions or other documents reviewed by the trial court, which are presented in essentially the same form to the appellate court.”).”

   2 later decisions quote this exact passage · from the majority
   e.g. Pierre v. State · 920 So. 2d 1156 - State v. Johns

3. “Lastly, Parker contends that the trial court erred by limiting the testimony of former assistant state attorney Richard Barlow, who presented the testimony of Michael Bryant during Cave’s 1993 penalty phase to establish that Cave was the shooter. Specifically, Parker argues that the trial court erred in precluding Barlow from testifying ... as to Barlow’s professional considerations in evaluating Bryant’s statement in conjunction with the medical examiner’s evidence .... With respect to the exclusion of Barlow’s professional considerations in evaluating the credibility of Bryant’s statements, the trial court sustained the State’s objection to this line of questioning, ruling that the prosecutor’s “actual professional thought process” in evaluating a witness was not relevant. However, the trial court subsequently recognized during cross-examination that the State had opened the door to Barlow’s mental processes and that on redirect Parker would be allowed to question Barlow on this issue. It was Parker’s responsibility to reopen this line of questioning, which he failed to do. We therefore conclude that the trial court did not commit reversible error in sustaining the objection to testimony about the prosecutor’s evaluation of Bryant as a witness.”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage · from the majority
   e.g. 89 So. 3d 844 - Parker v. State