Homicidal sleepwalkers: 5 unusual cases of accidental death

Throughout the world there are a large number of people who suffer from sleepwalking; it is known that these people wander around the house and sometimes perform complex actions, and even housework, being unconscious, automatically.

As a general rule, it is a problem that can be annoying and generate confusion and scares for those who observe it; in the worst case, the proximity of windows or doors facing the street can lead to dangerous situations.

However, on some occasions the activities that are carried out are more strange: there are painters who are only capable of creating in a state of somnambulism, or people who commit crimes in said state, such as rape or murders. In this last case we are talking about homicidal sleepwalkers.

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sleepwalking

Before going into detail about what a homicidal sleepwalker means, it is necessary to briefly review what exactly is sleepwalking.

Sleepwalking is defined as a sleep disorder included within the parasomnias

, or sleep behavior disorders, which does not alter the amount of total sleep and wakefulness. In the case of sleepwalking, we find subjects who carry out motor activities in an unconscious state, generally during stages 3 or 4 of non-REM sleep. These actions are usually limited to getting up and walking around, sometimes even with their eyes open.

It is a relatively common disorder in the population, especially during the stage of child development. There is an alteration in the sleep cycles, specifically between the transition from non-REM to REM sleep. The motor system is not paralyzed, as would happen in most cases, and the body acts without consciousness being able to take charge of the situation.

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From sleepwalking to homicide

It is in this context that anomalous behaviors can appear. And it is that the motor system is active while consciousness is only partially active with which different actions could be carried out beyond one's own will. And depending on the case, this could generate violent behavior in people subject to great stress, frustration, and that generate aggressive responses.

A homicidal sleepwalker is a person who commits a homicide in a non-vigilant state.: that is, while asleep. The subject would not be aware of the situation and this would be beyond his will and control. As in most cases, the sleepwalker does not remember what happened later, although he may retain some fragmented image of the situation.

This is a phenomenon that is not very common, but is technically possible (cerebral alterations during sleep have been verified in some subjects studied) and in fact it has occurred on several occasions throughout history (there are more than fifty registered cases). However, it is necessary to reiterate that these are very rare cases: most sleepwalkers do not commit this type of act and they just wander.

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Some known homicidal sleepwalkers

Despite the fact that it may seem like an excuse used to request criminal prosecution or be used as a mitigation in a trial, the truth is that they have There have been occasions in which it has been ruled that a murderer acted asleep or in a state of semi-consciousness, resulting in the subject being declared innocent. Some of the cases of homicidal sleepwalkers that have been recorded in this regard below.

1. robert ledru

The case of Robert Ledru is one of the oldest on record. In 1887, this chief inspector of the French police (considered one of the greatest French investigators of the 19th century) was sent to investigate a murder that occurred on the beach in Le Havre. The victim was André Monet, who had been shot dead. There was no apparent motive, and the subject was not known in the area and kept all his belongings on him.

The only clue that was found besides the bullet (which belonged to a very common type of weapon at the time) was a series of footprints near the body. When the inspector approached, he was able to observe that in said footprints the lack of a thumb on the right foot was appreciated.. After a moment in which he seemed frightened, he ordered a plaster cast of the footprints to be produced, which he subsequently examined. After said examination, he reported that he already knew who the murderer was.

Once at the police station, Ledru turned himself in: the morning after the murder, he had been surprised to notice that his socks and clothes were wet, and after analyzing the crime scene, he observed that his gun was missing a bullet of the same caliber as the one that killed the victim. And the most remarkable thing: he was missing the thumb of his right foot, corresponding to the footprints found with his own.

The inspector declared that he was not aware of having committed the crime, probably carried out during his sleep. However, he requested to be detained considering that he could be a security risk of other citizens. To verify this fact, it was decided to lock him in a cell with a pistol with blank bullets. Once the agent fell asleep, he got up and started shooting at the guards watching him before laying down again to continue sleeping. It was considered true and it was decided that he would spend the rest of his life secluded on a farm in the outskirts, monitored under medical control.

2. Kenneth Parks

One of the most famous and well-known cases is that of Kenneth Parks, in 1978. This man, a compulsive gambler and with numerous debts, left his house to take the car and go to his in-laws' house. While there, he killed his mother-in-law with a bar and strangled her mother-in-law to death. After that he drove to a police station and turned himself in. The event has the particularity that During the entire process, the subject was asleep..

Kenneth, who had been sleepwalking for a long time, was analyzed using the technique of encephalography and the measurement of his sleep waves reflected that he changed sleep cycles quickly and abruptly. Being in a period of not deep sleep, he was able to commit the acts without real awareness of carrying them out. He was found not guilty.

3. simon fraser

Another known case is that of Simon Fraser, who while asleep he dreamed that a creature tried to kill his son. Apparently trying to protect him, he attacked the creature, and soon after regained consciousness, to discover to his horror that it had killed his son, smashing his head against the wall.

Fraser had a prior history of violent acts in his sleep; he had attacked his father and his sister, and had even harmed himself while he slept. On one occasion he came to take his wife out of bed by her legs, dreaming that there was a fire. After a series of studies, the subject was finally considered innocent and acquitted, although it was established that he should sleep separately from other people in a locked room.

4. Brian Thomas

One more case of homicidal sleepwalking is found in Brian Thomas, a man with a long history of parasomnias who in 2009 strangled his wife while she was sleeping. This Briton had been under stress, after having argued with some young people at a time when he and his wife were celebrating the conclusion of cancer treatment. After going to bed, Thomas dreamed how one of the young men entered his room and stood over his wife, so he rushed at the supposed young man and fought with him. Shortly after he would wake up, to observe that during the dream he had killed his wife. He was found not guilty.

5. Scott Falater

A case of an alleged homicidal sleepwalker is found in the figure of Scott Falater, who in 1997 stabbed up to 44 times to her wife, after which he would throw her into the pool and store the bloodstained dress in her car. After being arrested, Falater he could not find an explanation for the acts that he considered that based on the evidence he should have carried out.

An expert in sleep disorders examined the murderer and ruled that it could be possible that the perpetrator of the acts had committed them while he was sleepwalking. However, it was considered that his actions were excessively complex to have been done while asleep and without planning and after being found guilty he was sentenced to life imprisonment.

Causes?

Given the examples we have seen, it is worth asking what can cause a person to kill another while unconscious.

As we have seen, sleepwalking It is produced by a mismatch in the activation and inhibition of the different brain regions that occur throughout the different phases and cycles of sleep. Specifically, the problem is found in the third and fourth stages of sleep (corresponding to deep slow-wave sleep) and the subsequent transition to REM sleep. However, the reasons for this fact are unknown.

It is known that sleepwalking has some relationship with the level of psychosocial stress. In adults, it can also appear between mental and organic disorders, or as a consequence of substance use. One factor that may have some influence when it comes to altering sleep patterns is the presence of factors such as stress or depression. In addition, in almost all cases of homicidal sleepwalkers it has been seen how the aggressor suffered or had suffered high levels of stress or tension and some type of emotional conflict prior to the act.

For example, in the case of Ledru, the inspector was under great stress and suffered some level of depression and fatigue from his job, in addition to suffering from syphilis for a decade. Something similar happened with Parks (with financial and gambling problems), Thomas (a previous fight and the stress caused by his wife's cancer) and Fraser. It is also common for them to have a long history of parasomnias.

But being unconscious does not explain why in some cases this somnambulism ends up degenerating into violent behavior or how it can lead to murder or homicide. It is speculated that in these cases the prefrontal may be inactive and not govern the appropriate behavior and personal morale, while the amygdala and limbic system would remain active and generating the response aggressive.

The big doubt

Taking into account the previous definitions and the cases shown, a question may arise that may seem obvious: are we facing real cases of murders committed unconsciously during sleep, or in an attempt to justify or get declared innocent? In most cases, expert advice on sleep and its disorders has been obtained, and sleep records to verify the possible existence of this problem, as well as brain function during the dream.

The answer to this question is not simple: as with other mental disorders, the level of consciousness of the defendant at the time of committing the crime must be taken into account and if at that moment his condition generated his conduct. This can only be known indirectly, and with a margin of error to take into account.

In fact, in some of the cases cited there has been great controversy: the case of Brian Thomas, for example, has raised doubts among some experts as to whether he was really unconscious (choking someone requires a lot of strength and a situation of resistance or struggle on the part of the other person), and the conviction of Scott Falater that aroused controversy when consider the expert who was unaware but who applied due to the jury's consideration that his acts were too detailed to be carried out without any awareness.