29-year-old man charged with rape as trial nears verdict

This report is a localnews.ie summary based on public court reporting and records; sources are listed below.

A 29-year-old man charged with rape was in the closing stages of his trial at the Central Criminal Court. The proceedings were reported on 25 October 2016.

The accused conceded he could have had sex with his friend when they shared a bed, but said it resulted from sexsomnia, a sleep condition that causes sufferers to carry out sexual acts while asleep.

Dr Catherine Crowe, director of a sleep clinic based at the Mater Hospital, told the trial she believed the alleged rape was “more likely” an episode of sleep sex. She said the accused had a history of sleepwalking from early adolescence and sexsomnia before the alleged rape. According to his former girlfriend, he continued to have sleep sex afterwards.

However, prosecution witness Dr Harry Kennedy, Clinical Director of the Central Mental Hospital, said the man's behaviour demonstrated fully intact mental capacity at the time. In closing arguments on 25 October 2016, the prosecution argued that “drink and opportunism” was a more likely explanation than sexsomnia.

Mr Justice Patrick McCarthy was summarising the case and instructing the jury on the law. The jury was expected to begin deliberating the following day.