986 So. 2d 270 - Brown v. State’s Empirical Analysis

Citation profile

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

1. “[A] statement will not be improper simply because it sends a message that the community will not tolerate violence, but if it makes an appeal based on unproven sentiments of the community. These are statements which tend to cajole or coerce a jury to reach a verdict for the purpose of meeting public favor and not based on the evidence. Put another way, the focus of a prosecutor[’]s closing argument should be on the facts in evidence and not the broader problems of crime in society “lest the remediation of society’s problems distract jurors from the awesome responsibility with which they are charged.” It must be clear beyond a reasonable doubt, that absent the prosecutor’s comments, the jury could have found the defendant guilty. This goes beyond a finding of sufficient evidence to sustain a conviction.”

   5 later decisions quote this exact passage
   e.g. Shelley v. State · V'Nell L. Miskell v. State of Mississippi

2. “The jurors are representatives of the community in one sense, but they are not to vote in a representative capacity. Each juror is to apply the law to the evidence and vote accordingly. The issue which each juror must resolve is not whether or not he or she wishes to “send a message” but whether or not he or she believes that the evidence showed the defendant to be guilty of the crime charged. The jury is an arm of the State but it is not an arm of the prosecution. The State includes both the prosecution and the accused. The function of the jury is to weigh the evidence and determine the facts. When the prosecution wishes to send a message they should employ Western Union. Mississippi jurors are not messenger boys.”

   3 later decisions quote this exact passage
   e.g. Shelley v. State · Harris v. State

3. “A 'send the message' argument is one that encourages 'juries to use their verdict to 'send-a-message' to the public or to other potential criminals,' instead of 'render[ing] a verdict based solely on the evidence introduced at the trial of that case.'”

   2 later decisions quote this exact passage
   e.g. Welford Lee McCarty v. State of Mississippi · Robert Patrick Terrell v. State of Mississippi