LGST 101 Chapter 5: Criminal Laws - Cases II
30 Sep 2015
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Brief fact summary: the defendant utter stabbed and killed his son. He claims to have no recollection of the murder, as it was committed after the defendant had consumed alcohol and allegedly killed by a conditioned response. Synopsis of rule of law: an act committed during unconsciousness is not voluntary, and therefore one cannot be held criminally culpable. However, voluntarily induced unconsciousness, i. e. by drugs or alcohol, is not a complete defense. Facts: the defendant and his son had been living together at the time of the killing. He testified that he began drinking in the morning. The defendant remembers drinking with a friend of his and waking up in jail but does not remember anything in between. At trial, the defendant sought to introduce evidence of conditioned response, which his expert defined as an act done automatically in response to a certain stimulus.
