Timothy Malcolm Rowland, 40, was found not guilty of raping a woman at his apartment. Rowland claimed he was experiencing an episode of sexsomnia, a sleep disorder characterized by sexual behavior during sleep. The jury deliberated for several hours, sending questions to the judge regarding the legal implications of unconscious acts. Judge John Pickering cautioned jurors against creating new laws and emphasized the need to base their decision on existing legal frameworks.
On Thursday, Timothy Malcolm Rowland, 40, was found not guilty of having non-consensual sex with a woman at hisThe 40-year-old told the seven-day jury trial he was experiencing an episode of sexsomnia, a medical condition where people exhibit sexual behaviour during sleep.
One inquiry of concern to the judge regarded the consequences of committing crimes while a person was unconscious.A jury should not be determining a case based on laws it wished were in place but instead on the current laws, he warned.Someone could not be found guilty of a crime they did unconsciously, Pickering said.There were no current laws, rules or regulations about having sexsomnia or doing something while having the medical condition, the judge said.
Rowland and the woman went drinking at a cocktail bar in inner-city Darlinghurst on the night of the alleged rape, returning to his apartment about 1am, the jury heard during the trial. About 6am, the woman allegedly woke to find Rowland having sex with her before she pushed him off, jumped out of the bed and left the apartment.But the issue before the jury was whether he was having an episode at the time of the alleged rape or whether he was awake.Earlier on Thursday, the jury asked what sort of evidence there could be to prove someone was awake.
SEXSOMNIA RAPE ACQUITTAL UNCONSCIOUS ACTS LEGAL CASE
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