GRAND FALLS-WINDSOR, N.L. -- A judge has ordered a new trial for a man convicted of sexually touching his younger sister on the grounds that he may have sexsomnia, a condition involving sexual activity during sleep.
Judge Kendra Goulding of the Newfoundland and Labrador Supreme Court quashed his conviction and said a new trial should be conducted for the man, whose identity is protected under a publication ban.
She says in a 16-page decision that new evidence about his alleged mental disorder raising the possibility he was asleep during the offence warranted a new hearing in provincial court.
The evidence includes a report by a forensic psychiatrist who examined the man and concluded he likely suffered from sexsomnia.
The court also heard from the man's girlfriend, who said in an affidavit she had witnessed him perform sexual acts while he was apparently asleep.
The man was convicted in 2013 of putting his hands down the pants of the young girl in 2011 while they were sleeping outside and served five months in prison.
