Berry v. State’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

1 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 1 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.

1. “Mr. Berry meets criteria for diagnosis with bipolar disorder, most recent episode mixed, with psychotic features.... In the days prior to the assault, Mr. Berry started to experience visual hallucinations and delusions of an evil presence in his friend’s house. His delusions and hallucinations continued upon his return to his father’s house and he began to experience auditory hallucinations on the morning of the assault.... Mr. Berry was described by the ER psychiatrist as delusional, with a disorganized thought process, shortly after his arrest. All but one of the reports noted the defendant had used alcohol fairly heavily over the weekend preceding the assault, but had not been drinking heavily before then and had not consumed alcohol for nearly 24 hours at the time of the attack. It is therefore unlikely the defendant was intoxicated on alcohol at the time of the assault. It is also unlikely the defendant was experiencing delirium tremens.... In addition, the ER physician specifically stated the defendant was not experiencing delirium tremens. At the time of the clinical interview, the defendant had no memory of the assault itself.... Based on the defendant’s active psychosis at the time of the assault, his attribution of the assault to an eagle (a symbol for God) and to God’s message to him, and his lack of any attempt to flee the scene or destroy evidence, I believe the defendant did not appreciate the wrongfulness of his actions at the time of the alleged offense.”

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

2. “(1) The Defendant’s conduct and statements before, during, and after the attack point to his knowledge of the wrongful nature of his actions. (2) The Defendant’s conduct during the assault constituted a substantial step toward the commission of the intended crime of killing Tony Monday. (3) The psychotic symptoms displayed by the Defendant began during his alcohol binge on Saturday and Sunday and continued into the morning of the assault. Given the Defendant’s longstanding and chronic alcoholism, coupled with his heavy drinking on the weekend preceding the assault on Monday morning, February 9, the Court concludes that these symptoms were brought on by the Defendant’s voluntary abuse of alcohol, rather than the result of Bipolar Disorder or other mental disease or defect.”

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