Title: Supreme Court to rule on whether extreme intoxication can be used as a criminal defence
Category: Law & Order
Posted By: DrCaleb
Date: 2021-10-13 06:46:38
Canadian

   

I say, as distasteful as it is, it's a valid defense. "actus non facit reum nisi mens sit rea"

   

Unless you are an addict, I think it was your choice to get that intoxicated. Just because you don't remember it, doesn't mean you didn't do it, intend to do it, or knew that you were likely to do it.

And what is 'extreme intoxication'? Irish level? Russian? Aussies on a Tuseday?

   

This is the issue with mens rea offences. Manslaughter, I believe, does not require culpability. I wonder that it's just making its way to the Supreme Court now--for all of history I imagine many horrible crimes have been perpetrated by people to wrecked to have any idea what they were doing.

   

That Ontario Court of Appeal is probably one of the stupidest rulings in Canadian legal history.

Nobody forced these clowns to take their shrooms or pills before they went and stabbed their parents. And what difference would it make to the victim if somebody rapes them while being high as opposed to being drunk? How can you justify the Criminal Code section as only applying to booze, but not drugs like meth or cocaine?

And how long will it take before some drunk driver tries using this as a defence? When the Trudeau Liberals legalized cannabis, they worked with the provinces to make sure that driving while stoned is just as illegal as driving while drunk. So what's the difference between hitting someone in a vehicle while driving intoxicated and stabbing someone while intoxicated?

   

White privilege.

   

A lot of people still believe that driving is a right, no matter what condition they're in. I'm sure there are some that think they are better drivers when drunk or stoned.

   

Speaking as someone who has experienced the full Irish level of this condition way too often, I am of the opinion that intoxication should make any violent offence more serious as it does when driving. We’d hear a lot less about it in the courts then. The notion that it’s some sort of excuse is absurd.

   

To paraphrase Bill Cosby; "They say Alcohol enhances your personality. But what if you are an asshole?"

   

It’s a factor of what ever happens but it’s not a defence! That’s ridiculous. Everyone seems to want an excuse for everything these days!