Riddle v. State’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

36 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 38 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.

1. “Appellant remembered the victim raising his hands, grabbing his head and moaning. Thereafter, appellant hit the victim in the head at least fourteen more times. There was no testimony the victim ever attempted to sexually assault appellant or harm him in any way after the initial blow to the victim’s head. Appellant did not testify he could not retreat or he attempted to retreat but was prevented from doing so. There was no evidence [the victim] wielded a weapon which prevented appellant from leaving. Appellant was not justified in his use of deadly force.... A reasonable person would have retreated without using deadly force, and therefore, appellant was not entitled to an instruction on self-defense.”

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

2. “(1) if he would be justified in using force against the other under Section 9.31; (2) if a reasonable person in the actor’s situation would not have retreated; and (3) when and to the degree he reasonably believes the deadly force is immediately necessary: (A) to protect himself against the other’s use or attempted use of unlawful deadly force; or (B) to prevent the other’s imminent commission of aggravated kidnapping, murder, sexual assault, aggravated sexual assault, robbery, or aggravated robbery.”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage
   e.g. Reich-Bacot v. State

3. “A jury charge which tracks the language of a particular statute is a proper charge on the statutory issue.”

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