Question
A woman was arrested and charged with first-degree murder. In the woman's jurisdiction, first-degree murder is defined by statute as the unlawful killing of another
A woman was arrested and charged with first-degree murder. In the woman's jurisdiction, first-degree murder is defined by statute as the unlawful killing of another person with premeditation and deliberation. Police say the woman killed her husband about two minutes after he returned home from a night out with friends. She was worried her husband might be seeing someone else. She had been trying to take her mind off the problems in her marriage by watching her favorite television shows while drinking martinis for several hours before her husband returned home. She claims that she just wanted to talk with her husband once he returned home and did not intend to kill him. When he did come home, she was in an extremely intoxicated condition. She asked her husband where he had been and he responded by taunting her that she was a drunk and he was cheating on her with her best friend. She responded by taking a gun out of the unlocked desk drawer and shooting him. After her arrest, her blood alcohol content was tested and the results indicated she was severely impaired by alcohol at the time of the shooting.
Is the prosecution likely to succeed in its attempt to convict her of first-degree murder?
A. | Yes, because voluntary intoxication is never an excuse that can be used as an affirmative defense to a criminal charge; at the most, it can be used as mitigating circumstances in the sentencing stage. | |
B. | No, because there is sufficient proof of intoxication that prevented her from having the sufficient mental capacity to form the specific premeditative intent necessary for first-degree murder. | |
C. | No, because intoxication, even if voluntary, is an absolute defense to most kinds of violent crime due to the lack of mental capacity necessary for committing a crime. | |
D. | Yes, because she waited for her husband knowing that she could exact revenge against him by killing him. |
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