State v. Courchesne

In State v. Courchesne, 262 Conn. 537, 816 A.2d 562 (2003), the Supreme Court held that it is our responsibility "to determine, in a reasoned manner, the meaning of the statutory language as applied to the facts of the case, including the question of whether the language actually does apply. In seeking to determine that meaning, we must look to the words of the statute itself, to the legislative history and circumstances surrounding its enactment, to the legislative policy it was designed to implement, and to its relationship to existing legislation and common law principles governing the same general subject matter." State v. Courchesne, supra, 577. "In performing this task, we begin with a searching examination of the language of the statute, because that is the most important factor to be considered." State v. Courchesne, supra, 577.