Skip to main content

Man s cleared of sexually assaulting 20-year-old woman after he claimed he was sleepwalking when he climbed into her bed

Man, 53, is cleared of sexually assaulting 20-year-old woman after he claimed he was sleepwalking when he climbed into her bed
Gerard Bryceland

A Scottish man has finally been cleared of sexually assaulting a 20-year-old woman at his flat after he claimed he was sleepwalking when he climbed into her bed. 

 

Gerard Bryceland, 53, was accused of touching the complainant inappropriately at his home in Glasgow's West End in August 2019. The woman said she 'froze' as she and her partner woke to find the man in bed beside them with his hand over her body.

 

But the defendant has now been acquitted of the sex assault charge after telling a court that he was sleepwalking at the time.


A sheriff at Glasgow Sheriff Court accepted a psychiatrist's view that Bryceland's sleepwalking was a 'mental disorder'. 


The special defence states: 'A person is not criminally responsible for conduct constituting an offence, and is to be acquitted of the offence, if the person was at the time of the conduct unable by reason of mental disorder to appreciate the nature or wrongfulness of the conduct'.


Glasgow Sheriff Court heard Bryceland, his wife and the young couple had gone out together that day before going back to the flat.

 

Prosecutor Chris Farrell told the court the pair went to sleep in Bryceland's spare bedroom when the 53-year-old started groping her. 

 

'The woman said she was frozen and woke up to find a hand on her breast,' he said. 

'Buttons on her pyjamas were undone and his hand moved down to her thigh area.' 

Her partner woke up and was able to shake off Bryceland who 'rose quickly, almost immediately and sprung up out of bed.'


Mr. Farrell added: 'He walked out to the hallway laughing.'


Bryceland and his wife reportedly met psychiatrist Saduf Riaz, who diagnosed his sleepwalking condition.


Glasgow Sheriff Court heard Bryceland had been sleepwalking since he was a boy and it can be triggered by alcohol use and anxiety.


Ann Ritchie, defending, said: 'He was horrified and shocked about what happened in the room and wanted to apologise to both of them. The psychiatrist said he was worried about it and he was depressed.'


Sheriff Charles Lugton said: 'I find that the special defence has been established. This was a serious incident as a result of your sleepwalking which is a condition. It is appropriate to consider the need to protect the public following on from your acquittal.'

 

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The case against Fotis Dulos for allegedly killing his wife is now closed, lawyers say

                               The case against a Connecticut man accused of killing his wife effectively ended Tuesday, his lawyers told CNN. Fotis Dulos  died  in late January before an emergency bond hearing in late January, after an apparent suicide attempt. "This was not the ending we anticipated, in the form we hoped," Norm Pattis said in a press conference outside of court. "We hoped fully well to stand in front of you someday with the charges against Mr. Dulos ended by way of an acquittal." The state's attorney chose not to continue prosecuting the case against Dulos, who had been  charged  with murder, felony murder and kidnapping in connection to his missing wife, Jennifer Farber Dulos. Dulos's former attorney and an ex-girlfriend were also charged in connection to her disappearance. Pattis argued in court today for the case to remain open, positing that Farber Dulos had been ki...
Post a Comment
Read more

Ex-President Omar al-Bashir sent to prison days after he was ousted in a military coup

Sudan's former President Omar al-Bashir has been moved to Kobar maximum security prison, days after he was deposed in a military coup.   Reports say the ex-leader has until now been detained at the presidential residence under heavy guard. He is reportedly being held in solitary confinement and is surrounded by tight security.   Months of protests in Sudan led to the ousting and arrest of the long-time ruler on Thursday. Uganda's Minister for Foreign Affairs Henry Oryem Okello told Reuters news agency the country would consider offering the deposed leader asylum if he applied, despite an arrest warrant issued by the International Criminal Court (ICC).   As an ICC member, Uganda would have to hand over Mr Bashir if he arrived in the country. The ICC has not yet commented. Until now, Bashir's whereabouts since his removal were unknown. The coup leader at the time, Awad Ibn Auf, said Mr Bashir was being detained in a "safe place". He himself stoo...
Post a Comment
Read more

Community leader, two others shot in Plateau attacks

                        The district head of Gashis community in Plateau State and two others were shot on Sunday evening, an official has said. The transition management committee chairman of Barkin Ladi Local Government Area of Plateau State, Dickson Chollom, on Monday reported the shooting of the district head in his house and that of two others in a barber’s shop in Barkin Ladi by armed men. “Gwom Rwei Gashis (the district head) is unconscious and has been rushed down to Barkin Ladi general hospital,” he said. Mr Chollom said the special task force on the Jos crisis (STF), also known as “Operation Safe Heaven” reported the shooting of the community leader to him. “Gashis commander, Awolor, confirmed to me that Mr Gashis’ residence was attacked and burned down.” Mr Chollom, in a text message on Monday morning, told PREMIUM TIMES that the community le...
Post a Comment
Read more