A MAN who admitted strangling his wife walked free from court last week because he was asleep when he killed her (see 鈥淐an you be blamed for crimes in your sleep?鈥�). Acquitting Brian Thomas was the right decision under British law, where mens rea 鈥� a 鈥済uilty mind鈥� 鈥� is necessary to secure a conviction. He was a decent and devoted husband. That may not always be true in such cases, however, and 鈥淚 did it in my sleep鈥� defences are on the increase. What to do?
First, we must get the science right, by discerning which states of consciousness really remove responsibility. The courts also have to keep abreast of neuroscience, and to treat the testimony of expert witnesses with care. Science does not have all the answers, but it does possess one quality that is particularly relevant to these difficult cases: scepticism.