What if I was intoxicated and charged with Reckless Endangerment?

A special jury instruction exists with respect to Reckless Endangerment cases when an individual is voluntarily intoxicated. Voluntary intoxication means that the individual became intoxicated of their own volition and not by force or involuntarily at the hand of another. A person can still act recklessly when he or she creates a substantial risk of serious physical injury despite being unaware of this risk because of intoxication. This means that voluntary intoxication will not be a defense to a charge of Reckless Endangerment in the 2^nd Degree. However, voluntary intoxication may be considered in determining whether the defendant’s mind was affected by intoxicants to such a degree that he or she was incapable of forming the mental state of depraved indifference to human life. This means that voluntary intoxication may be considered by the jury as a defense to the charge of Reckless Endangerment in the 1^st Degree