Sanchez v. State
Indiana Supreme Court
749 N.E.2d 509 (Ind. 2001)
Relevant factsFree
Guadalupe Sanchez (defendant) was charged with raping and confining a 17-year-old girl. At trial, the court instructed the jury that it could not consider evidence of Sanchez's voluntary intoxication in determining his mental state at the time of the offense. Sanchez was convicted and appealed, arguing the instruction was erroneous; the court of appeals affirmed, and Sanchez sought further review.
IssueFree
Whether a court may bar the admission of voluntary-intoxication evidence when it is offered to rebut a defendant's mental state.