Affidavit for Acquiring an Expert on Alcohol Blackout / Amnesia
This sample declaration illustrates how a forensic psychologist might describe alcohol-related memory effects and related psychological concepts in a request for expert assistance. It discusses blackouts, reconstructive recall, source misattribution, suggestibility, and other possible influences, then applies them cautiously to a hypothetical case while noting the need to review case evidence.
Blackout as Criminal Defense or Mitigation
This 2013 evidence-based review evaluates scientific research cited when defendants claim alcohol-induced blackout as a criminal defense or mitigating factor. The authors report that studies do not provide an objective way to verify a blackout and argue that memory loss alone does not establish impairment of planning, attention, or other functions relevant to criminal intent.
Goldilocks Challenge
The Goldilocks Challenge handout outlines prosecution and defense arguments in alcohol-related sexual assault cases involving questions of intoxication, memory, and consent. It discusses the limits of knowledge about blackouts and distinguishes conscious behavior from memory encoding, while listing possible explanations for later inconsistent recollections, including confabulation and post-event misinformation.
Instructions for Voluntary Intoxication
This sample jury instruction tells jurors to consider voluntary intoxication when deciding whether the accused had a required specific intent, acted with premeditated design, or knew a relevant fact. It says blackout-related inability to remember is not itself a defense but may be considered in assessing intoxication, and that the prosecution must prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.