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Man cleared of sex assault on young girl after experts tell court he was sleepwalking
The Daily Mail (U.K.) / various ^
| December 31, 2008
Posted on 12/31/2008 8:51:25 AM PST by Stoat
A man was acquitted of sexually assaulting a young girl after medical experts said he was sleepwalking.
Alan Ball, 35, climbed into bed with the child and kissed her on the lips after drinking heavily at a New Year's Eve house party last year.
But a judge found him not guilty of sexual assault when he heard two experts agreed Mr Ball was sleepwalking at the time and did not know what he was doing.
The former lorry driver today said he lost his job and became a social outcast following the allegations.
Fiorella Brereton, prosecuting, told Preston crown court Mr Ball was sleepwalking when he got into bed with the girl, who cannot be named for legal reasons.
She said: 'The defendant slept on a settee downstairs, but went upstairs and eventually got into bed with the child and kissed her on the lips.
'When interviewed, he had no memory of what had happened that evening.'
She said two experts were prepared to investigate Mr Ball's sleepwalking claim because of the serious nature of the alleged sexual offence against the girl.
Miss Brereton added: 'Both experts were of the opinion the defendant would not have known what he was doing.
'He has a history of sleepwalking typical of that type of behaviour of not knowing what he was doing. Sleepwalking is also within the family.
'He had drunk a significant amount of alcohol that night.
(Excerpt) Read more at dailymail.co.uk ...
TOPICS: Crime/Corruption; Government; News/Current Events; United Kingdom
KEYWORDS: alanball; britain; england; greatbritain; sexualassault; sleepwalker; sleepwalking; somnambulism; somnambulist; uk; unitedkingdom
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To: Philo-Junius
LOL! Excellent points! (And we are unfair to skunks.) Perhaps the “sleepwalking” defense has a long and storied history :-).
41
posted on
12/31/2008 1:52:20 PM PST
by
Tax-chick
(You exist, okay? YOU EXIST! Now stop talking to me!)
To: Stoat
experts agreed Mr Ball was
sleepwalking blind drunk at the time and did not know what he was doing.
Voluntary diminishment of capacity should be an exacerbating, not a mitigating, circumstance.
42
posted on
12/31/2008 3:55:04 PM PST
by
ApplegateRanch
(The mob got President Barabbas; America got shafted)
To: Tax-chick; Stoat; nmh
We often see the word assault and think it means hitting, shooting, or other physical harm, but thats often not the meaning in law. The way it was taught to us in Oregon & California, was that 'assault' occurs when there is a credible or actual attempt to inflict bodily harm: i.e, throwing a punch or kick whether or not it connects.
Battery, OTOH, is actual touching, as in the punch, slap, kick, etc actually makes physical contact with another...whether that was the intended target or not.
One can assault one person; fail to connect, and also be guilty of battery by accidentally hitting a third party.
Example: A swings at B; B ducks, and C, standing nearby is struck A. Assault upon B; battery upon C.
43
posted on
12/31/2008 4:08:37 PM PST
by
ApplegateRanch
(The mob got President Barabbas; America got shafted)
To: ApplegateRanch
Good explanation. In Texas, though, assault could be verbal as well as a physical effort.
44
posted on
12/31/2008 4:38:04 PM PST
by
Tax-chick
(You exist, okay? YOU EXIST! Now stop talking to me!)
To: Tax-chick
California, it depended on who to whom.
Welfare momma screaming out her open door “if you tell him anything, I’ll kill you, you F’n B*,” when Mrs. AR was telling a cop that she saw her ‘man’ hit three cars, including mine, after bouncing off a dumpster, then run inside; and was telling the cop which apartment to visit: not assault nor a ‘threat’.
Me, to next door neighbor teens that entered (uninvited, after removing a board in the back fence) a friend’s house while we were there having dinner; they refused her repeated orders to leave; grabbed our meals off the table, to which I responded (asked to by our hostess) with “get out before I THROW your worthless punk @5535 out!” That WAS “verbal assault”, though the cops (called by their parents after they arrived back home) ‘only’ gave me a warning.
45
posted on
12/31/2008 5:04:18 PM PST
by
ApplegateRanch
(The mob got President Barabbas; America got shafted)
To: ApplegateRanch
Wonderful place, California. Sounds like British law enforcement there!
46
posted on
01/01/2009 5:06:30 AM PST
by
Tax-chick
(You exist, okay? YOU EXIST! Now stop talking to me!)
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