Involuntary intoxication is a complete defense where the defendant is so intoxicated that he is unable to distinguish between right and wrong, the same standard as applied in an insanity defense.
An involuntary intoxication defense is available where the intoxication results from: 1) fraud, trickery or duress of another; 2) accident or mistake on his own part; 3) a pathological condition; 4) ignorance as to the effects of prescribed medication.
Involuntary intoxication is solely a claim that the person, without personal culpability for the intoxication, was so intoxicated at the particular time as to be unable to know right from wrong, or the nature and consequences of his acts.
An intoxication defense, in criminal law, is a defense by excuse, via which a defendant argues that they should not be held criminally liable for actions which broke the law, because they were intoxicated.
Depending on the nature of the crime, the effectiveness of the defense may hinge upon whether the defendant was subject to voluntary intoxication, or involuntary intoxication.
However, voluntary intoxication is never a defense to general intent crimes, such as arson, rape, or murder, that require a mens rea of malice or recklessness rather than the specific intent to commit the offense.
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