2015: RAPIST WHO CLAIMED HE SUFFERED FROM 'SEXSOMNIA' JAILED FOR EIGHT YEARS
A leader of a scouting troop who attempted to justify his rape convictions by claiming he was asleep during the offences has received an eight-year prison sentence.After a three-week trial at Bolton Crown Court, the jury dismissed Michael Adamson's assertion that he suffered from sexsomnia, a rare sleep disorder that causes individuals to engage in sexual acts while unconscious and unaware of their actions.
The jury found him guilty of sexually assaulting one woman and raping another between January 2009 and December 2012.
Adamson initially raped a woman in 2009 after she had been drinking and he had driven her home in his car.
He argued that he had fallen asleep and was unconscious at the time of the incident.
He later committed a second rape, claiming the same sleep disorder as his defense.
Judge Timothy Stead stated, “That defence was rejected by the jury and by me.
Committing a second offence aggravates the seriousness of the case.” The 28-year-old, who lives on Morton Street in Radcliffe, was tearful in court as his lawyer, Colin Buckle, explained that Adamson will be in prison and unable to attend the birth of his child.
Mr.
Buckle also remarked that aside from these convictions, Adamson had a good life, working as an auditor and serving his community as a scout leader.
“He was a good man in many respects,” he added, noting that Adamson has been mentoring other inmates and has applied to undertake university studies while detained.
In sentencing, Judge Stead called Adamson’s crimes “baffling,” and acknowledged that while many positive qualities can be associated with him, there seems to be an internal issue—described as unhealthy or problematic—that led to his actions, suggesting a troubling inability to control his impulses.
