Canada Supreme Court rules extreme intoxication can be violent crime defense

FILE PHOTO: General view of the Supreme Court of Canada building on Parliament Hill in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada September 17, 2020. REUTERS/Blair Gable

(Reuters) -The Supreme Court of Canada on Friday ruled that defendants accused of violent crimes such as homicide and sexual assault can use self-induced extreme intoxication as a defense, striking down a federal law supported by women's advocacy groups.

The court said a 1995 law that prohibits the defense was unconstitutional and violated Canada's Charter of Rights and Freedoms.