Department of Neurology, Ninewells Hospital, Dundee DD1 9SY, UK; Department of Sleep Medicine, Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh, 51 Little France Crescent, Edinburgh EH16 4SA, UK.
Centre for Law, Ethics and Society, Keele University, ST5 5BG, UK.
Sleep Med Rev. 2014 Jun;18(3):249-60. doi: 10.1016/j.smrv.2013.07.004. Epub 2013 Oct 1.
This review is aimed at summarizing the current state of knowledge regarding parasomnias, which have been implicated in medicolegal cases as well as providing guidance to those working within common-law jurisdictions regarding the technical aspects of the law. Sleepwalking and sexsomnia as a defence are being raised more frequently in criminal cases and there has been public debate on their validity. Unfortunately, expert evidence on forensic sleep disorders continues to be heavily opinion-based with the potential for miscarriages of justice seen in recent highly publicized cases. There is an apparent inertia in research into violent sleep disorders. We review the current state of forensic sleep science in the United Kingdom (UK) and abroad and discuss the need to formulate guidelines based on available evidence. We also highlight the pressing necessity for more research in this area as well as the need to reform the law, which is the subject of a recent Criminal Law Commission report in the United Kingdom. In time, this will facilitate the efficient, proportionate, and just disposal of violence arising from sleep, thus benefitting both society and the individual sufferer.
这篇综述旨在总结当前关于睡眠障碍的知识现状，这些知识在法医学案例中被提及，并为普通法司法管辖区内的相关人员提供法律技术方面的指导。梦游和性梦作为一种辩护在刑事案件中被越来越多地提出，其有效性也引发了公众辩论。不幸的是，法医睡眠障碍方面的专家证据仍然主要基于意见，在最近一些备受瞩目的案件中，存在误判的可能性。关于暴力性睡眠障碍的研究明显缺乏动力。我们回顾了英国（UK）和国外法医睡眠科学的现状，并讨论了根据现有证据制定指南的必要性。我们还强调了在这一领域进行更多研究的紧迫性，以及改革法律的必要性，这也是英国最近刑事法律委员会报告的主题。随着时间的推移，这将有助于高效、适度、公正地处理因睡眠引起的暴力行为，从而使社会和个人受害者都受益。
