White v. McQueen’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

9 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 10 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.

1. ““The defense that the defendant had probable cause to believe that plaintiff had been guilty of a felony was inadmissible under the pleadings. Notice of this defense should have been given. Mr. Chitty says: “ ‘Whoever assaults or imprisons another must justify himself by showing specially to the court that the act was lawful. And a plea justifying an arrest of the plaintiff upon the ground that a felony had been committed, and that there was reasonable ground to suspect and accuse the plaintiff, must distinctly state the specific reasons for suspecting the plaintiff. These are positive rules of law in order to prevent surprise on the plaintiff at the trial by the defendant then assigning. Various reasons and causes of imprisoning the plaintiff of which he had no notice, and which consequently he could not be prepared to meet at the trial on the plea of not guilty, on fair and equal terms with respect to the evidence and proof of facts-.’ 1 Chit. PL. 501; Wade v. Chaffee, 8 R. I. 224; Boynton v. Tidwell, 19 Tex. 118 . “It is manifestly of more importance to the plaintiff that he should be informed by the plea of the facts relied upon for his arrest without a warrant than when he is arrested upon a warrant, which he has the right to see and read when he is arrested.””

   1 later decision quote this exact passage
   e.g. Rourke v. Roche