Ex Parte Carter’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

1 federal appellate · 23 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 24 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.

1. ““Now, ladies and gentlemen, I will charge you that when the evidence relied on for conviction is circumstantial, the chain of circumstances must be com- píete and of such character as to convince beyond a reasonable doubt. And if the circumstances as proven fail to convince you beyond a reasonable doubt that the defendant is guilty, then you cannot convict the defendant. “I would also charge — I would also charge you that in deciding whether or not to accept circumstantial evidence as proof of facts in question, you must be satisfied first that the testimony of the witness who is presenting the circumstantial evidence is truthful and accurate, and second, that this existence of the facts in question — of the facts that the witness testifies to leads to the conclusion that the facts in question also happened. “Now, ladies and gentlemen, in other words, after considering all of the evidence in this case, if you have a doubt about the defendant’s guilt, and that doubt has a reason based on the evidence, a lack of evidence, or any part of the evidence, then you should acquit the defendant. “Circumstantial evidence, I told you, is evidence which tends to prove a fact by proving other events or circumstances which are usually or always attended by the facts sought to be established. With either direct or circumstantial evidence, you must be convinced of the defendant’s guilt beyond a reasonable doubt. No greater degree of certainty or proof is required where the evidence is circums”

   1 later decision quote this exact passage
   e.g. 20 So. 3d 830 - Marshall v. State

2. ““[I]n Holland v. United States, 348 U.S. 121 (1954), the Supreme Court of the United States abolished the requirement that federal courts give an instruction to the effect that when the prosecution’s evidence is circumstantial, it must be such as to exclude every reasonable hypothesis other than that of guilt. The Supreme Court stated that ‘the better rule is that where the jury is properly instructed on the standards for reasonable doubt, such an additional instruction on circumstantial evidence is confusing and incorrect.’ 348 U.S. at 137 . See also Jackson v. Virginia, 443 U.S. 307, 326 (1979) (rejecting the rule that in a case based solely on circumstantial evidence the prosecution was under an affirmative duty to rule out every hypothesis except that of guilt beyond a reasonable doubt). Direct and circum-”

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

3. ““ ‘Circumstantial evidence in this respect is intrinsically no different from testimonial evidence. Admittedly, circumstantial evidence may in some cases point to a wholly incorrect result. Yet this is equally true of testimonial evidence. In both instances, a jury is asked to weigh the chances that the evidence correctly points to guilt against the possibility of inaccuracy or ambiguous inference. In both, the jury must use its experience with people and events in weighing the probabilities. If the jury is convinced beyond a reasonable doubt, we can require no more.’ “348 U.S. at 137-38.””

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