96 W. Va. 360 - State v. Sterne’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

2 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 2 citing decisions cite the case generally; a passage count includes only decisions quoting that exact language verbatim.

1. “The object of the Legislature in passing this section was to strike at the root of the evil. When the prosecuting attorney, after using every effort in his power to root out the evil, fails to find any evidence, or insufficient evidence, by which offenders may be indicted and convicted, he calls upon a witness whom he has reason to believe has violated some one or all of the provisions of the act to testify, said witness appears, and if he gives fully, freely, and truthfully testimony tending in any way to incriminate himself, this section gives him immunity from any violation of the act about which he gives such testimony. It was doubtless well known to the Legislature at the time this section was passed that in some counties of the state, at least, it was difficult to obtain evidence against the violators of this act, although from even casual observation the act was being flagrantly violated, and, knowing these facts, the Legislature passed this section in order to assist the prosecuting attorney in obtaining evidence against the violators of the act. No one is protected under this section, except the witness who is called on behalf of the state to testify, and he must give freely and truthfully some testimony that tends in some way to incriminate himself in connection with the offense with which he is charged, and if he files a plea substantially setting up these facts he has the right to have the allegations of his plea passed upon by a jury.”

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