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Voluntary Intoxication

By Baker Associates

Voluntary intoxication occupies a unique position with regard to criminal law in Tennessee because it does not provide an actual defense to the commission of any crime but it can serve to negate the specific intent required by a criminal statute and thereby enable the defendant to avoid conviction. Some criminal offenses require that a specific intent on the part of the defendant exist in order for the defendant to be found guilty of the offense. First-degree murder, for example, requires that the killing of another individual be premeditated and intentional. Where a defendant is intoxicated, he or she may lack the ability to deliberate with regard to the offense (premeditate the killing) and thus may be able to avoid conviction under the first-degree murder statute...continue to full post

Full post as published by Tennessee Criminal Lawyer Blog on July 16, 2010 (boomark / email).