The defendant of their ownaccord took drink or drugs.
Key question number 1
Was the intoxication voluntary or involuntary?
key question 2 - Was the crime a specific or basic intent crime?
Specific intent crimes are those which require a mensrea of intention only.
For example:
Murder, theft and s18
Basic Intent
Crimes which require a mens rea of either intention/recklessness.
For example:
ABH
Key question number 3
Did the intoxication take away the mensrea?
Kingston (1994)
’friends’ drugged his coffee. Whilst intoxicated he assaulted a youth. At trial he said he would not have done it had he not been intoxicated. Court Held he could not use intoxication as a defence as drunken intent is still intent.
Set the precedent that
the intoxication must take away the mensrea to succeed as a defence.
Involuntary intoxication
e.g. spiked drinks
Can be a complete defence to any crime
(irrelevant of the mens rea – basic or specific intent)
must show that the intoxicationprevented the defendant forming the mensrea.
Hardie (1985)
Took his girlfriend’s valium. This would normally be voluntary intoxication. It was classed as involuntary because it had an unexpected side effect.
He could use it as a complete defence as he was able to prove it took away the mens rea.
Voluntary Intoxication depends on
whether crime is specific or basic
Basic intent crime: Majewski (1977)
He went on a 24 hour drinking binge and was charged with basicintent crimes ABH and CD.
Court held he could not use the defence of voluntary intoxication as a defence as they were basicintent crimes and he was reckless getting drunk.
Specific intent crimes:
If the charge is murder and the voluntaryintoxication took away the mensrea (intent) it will reduce the conviction to manslaughter.
If theft it can lead to an acquittal
Specific intent crime - Lipman
L and girlfriend took LSD. He thought he was being attacked by snakes and needed to defend himself. In doing so he suffocated his girlfriend by forcing a sheet down her throat.
He lacked mens rea due to the drugs and claimed intoxication.
As murder is a specific intent crime and he lacked the intent to kill due to the drugs the court reduced his conviction to manslaughter.
Specific intent crime - Gallagher
G wanted to kill his wife.
He bought a knife and a bottle of whisky.
Drank the whisky and killed his wife.
In his defence he said he was so intoxicated he did not have the mens rea for murder.
The Court failed the defence stating he had the mens rea when he bought the knife and whisky so could not use the defence.
Dutch Courage cases
Dutch courage is where you get yourself intoxicated in order to pluck up the courage to commit the crime.
The courts will not allow the defence in these cases as it does not protect the public.