Sexsomnia: Real or Excuse for Rape

A 27 year-old man from Sweden is charged with rape. The woman he is accused of raping passed out in a cabin from heavy drinking that night.

After she passed out, he had sex with her. Because the woman was so inebriated she could not refuse or consent, he is charged with rape.

The man claims he was asleep and did not know what he was doing until "I was awakened by her pushing me away and asking, 'Are you awake?'"

He claims to suffer from Sexsomnia, also called "sleep sex". People with this condition perform sex acts while they are asleep.

He admits this is not the first time that he has had sex without knowing.  When he was with his ex-girlfriend, she would tell him the next morning that he had sex with her in his sleep.

Is sexsomnia a real condition?  Dr. John Cline of Psychology Today says it is and it can be treated successfully.

"Sexsomnia can be successfully treated. Treatment involves medication(bedtime benzodiazepines) for sexual behavior associated with confusional arousals, CPAP to treat obstructive sleep apnea that is causing sleep disruption leading to confusional arousals and thus to sexsomnia, and anticonvulsant therapy for behavior related to seizure activity." 

Although sexsomnia is not very common, it has been used, successfully, as a defense in rape and molestation cases.

This man was aware, before the incident he is charged with, that he has this condition and that there is successful treatment available.  As with other conditions, not taking the prescribed treatment is not an excuse for criminal behavior.

It is difficult to believe he did not know what he was doing.  His statement that she said "Are you asleep?" doesn't make sense.  A woman, who thought she was being raped, would not ask that question.  Pretty sure that would not be my first question.

Once he became aware of his condition, he was obligated to ensure no unintended sex acts happened.  Using the available treatments is the best option to prevent this happening again. At the very least, no sleeping with children and no sleeping with adults with whom he is not having consensual sex.

What happens if he falls asleep on the couch next to one of his male buddies?  I seriously doubt there would be "sleep sex". Do you believe this guy's story?  Is "sleep sex" a valid defense for rape charges?

Peace