‘A “draconian” practice that stops crime victims challenging last-minute decisions to drop their cases is leading to miscarriages of justice and must urgently be reformed, campaigners say.’
The Guardian, 21st September 2024
Source: www.theguardian.com
‘A woman has been awarded £35,000 in compensation from the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) after her rape case was dropped over claims that she could have had an episode of a rare sleep condition called sexsomnia.’
The Guardian, 15th August 2024
Source: www.theguardian.com
‘It is over 17 years since I first ran a defence based on parasomnias. The circumstances of the offence were that in the early hours a 28-year-old man, whilst staying over at a friend’s house, had left the living room where he was sleeping, walked down the short hallway to his friend’s 15-year-old stepdaughter’s room and got into bed with her (he had slept in her room the night before) and touched her on her breasts. Two experts later (a sleep disorder expert and a neurologist) and I had evidence supportive of his case that what he had done had been in a state of sleep. I ran a defence of non-insane automatism based on somnambulism (sleepwalking) and sexsomnia (sexual activity in sleep). The jury acquitted. 6 years later I represented the same man charged with attempted murder. He had left his house, walked the short distance to his friend’s house, entered by an unlocked side door, went into her bedroom, got on her top of her and then put an axe to her head. Same experts, same defence, save that in this case the judge determined the appropriate defence was insanity and not non-insane automatism. The jury rejected insanity and the defendant was convicted.’
Drystone Chambers, 19th September 2023
Source: www.drystone.com
‘Violent and sexual crimes are among cases wrongfully dropped by the Crown Prosecution Service in the past year.’
BBC News, 11th October 2022
Source: www.bbc.co.uk
‘A man with a history of sleepwalking has been found not guilty by reason of insanity of sexually assaulting his friend’s girlfriend.’
BBC News, 20th August 2019
Source: www.bbc.co.uk
‘Revelation comes as armed forces’ rules are being updated and also to disqualify those who suffer from “sleep terrors.”’
The Guardian, 18th December 2015
Source: www.guardian.co.uk
“A drink driver who crashed his car at 100mph has avoided jail after telling a court he was sleepwalking.”
Daily Telegraph, 3rd June 2013
Source: www.telegraph.co.uk
“An actor who claimed he was suffering from the sleep disorder sexsomnia when he raped a 15-year-old girl after getting her drunk has been jailed for eight years.”
BBC News, 25th February 2013
Source: www.bbc.co.uk
“A man who claimed he was sleepwalking when he raped a 17-year-old girl at a Portuguese holiday resort in 2009 has been jailed for six years.”
The Guardian, 29th March 2012
Source: www.guardian.co.uk
“A man accused of raping a teenage girl walked free from court today after successfully arguing he could not stop himself from having sex while asleep.”
The Guardian, 4th July 2011
Source: www.guardian.co.uk
“A woman has spoken out after a man accused of raping her became the latest to be cleared because he was sleepwalking.”
Daily Telegraph, 16th November 2008
Source: www.telegraph.co.uk
“A Labour MP is seeking to outlaw the defence of sleepwalking in rape cases, arguing that acquittals on such grounds are ‘political correctness gone mad’. ”
BBC News, 15th October 2008
Source: www.bbc.co.uk
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