MINDSHOCK: SLEEPWALK TERRORS

03 July, 2006 by The_Boss

Channel 4 Monday July 3 2006 2200hrs to 2305hrs

32-year-old Jules Lowe woke up one morning in October 2003 to find his 83-year-old father Edward had been beaten to death.
The last thing Jules remembered was drinking with his dad in the kitchen after a night out in the pub.

But with no forced entry, Jules was the only suspect. He was arrested and brought to trial, but when he revealed that he was a sleepwalker, experts concluded that it was an extreme case of 'parasomnia', a disorder in which sleepers are not responsible for their actions.
But could they convince the jury?

Lowe's experience is one of several high-profile cases in recent years where people claim to have committed crimes, including murder and rape, in their sleep. They raise deep questions about the power of the subconscious and our ability to keep it under control.

Can we be held responsible for acts committed in our sleep, what do experts understand about the condition, and how can a jury tell if defendants are telling the truth? But were these people simply acting out dreams? Recent research has shown that parasomnias occur in the deepest phase of sleep, just before 'dream' (REM) sleep, when the rational parts of the brain are switched off.

Experts believe that the normal processes that paralyses sleepers are ineffective in these people, and that the condition is genetic. Featuring interviews with sufferers and experts, the film also examines cases of 'night terrors', and 'sexomniacs', who have sex in their sleep but have no memory of it in the morning.

Prod/ Dir: Steve Grogan; Exec Prod: Angela Chan; Prod Co: Firefly Film and Television Productions