Ottawa –
A parliamentary committee has recommended the federal government launch a public awareness campaign to clearly explain the extreme intoxication policy that caused confusion when laws were rushed through earlier this year.
Passed in June, the law updates the penal code after the Supreme Court ruled to repeal a ban on using narcissism as a legal defense in criminal cases.
The new law states that “extreme intoxication” renders a person unconscious or unable to consciously control their behavior – a high standard that the government says is rarely met.
The court now needs to consider whether taking the drug or alcohol could have been foreseen to cause extreme intoxication and cause the defendant to harm others.
The parliamentary committee that studied the law after it passed recommended that the government launch a public awareness campaign to “communicate in plain language” what the new law actually does, and why it is needed.
It also recommends that the government retain data on the use of “extreme intoxication” as a defense and review the law within three years.
The Canadian Press report was first published on December 13, 2022.