Episode 355: In this episode, we explore a phenomenon that blurs the line between consciousness and culpability: homicidal somnambulism. Can a person be held responsible for murder if they commit the act while sleepwalking? We'll examine two haunting cases that have grappled with this very question. First, we'll unravel the infamous story of Kenneth Parks, who, in 1987, drove 23 kilometres from his home in Pickering to Scarborough, Ontario, where he brutally attacked his in-laws, Dennis and Barbara Woods, killing his mother-in-law. Then, we'll turn our attention to the lesser-known case of Clayton John Vickberg, who attempted to kill his friend Hugh Heglin in Victoria. B.C., in 1996, while allegedly in a state of automatism. These cases challenge our understanding of criminal intent and raise unsettling questions about the nature of consciousness itself.

Sources:

Sleepwalking - Symptoms and causes

5 Possible Causes of Sleepwalking

Sleepwalking: What Is Somnambulism?

Sleepwalking (Somnambulism)

Sleepwalking Doesn’t Have To Stop You From Resting Easy

Dark Poutine 115: The Homicidal Sleepwalker (ON)

1992 CanLII 78 (SCC) | R. v. Parks | CanLII

1998 CanLII 15068 (BC SC) | R. v. Vickberg | CanLII

Sleepwalking — Sleep Forensic Medicine

Homicidal somnambulism: a case report - PubMed

Killer Sleep: An Overview of Homicidal Somnambulism

Nov 15, 1985, page 17 - Times Colonist at Newspapers.com

Nov 17, 1989, page 19 - Times Colonist at Newspapers.com

Sept 19, 1991, page 21 - Times Colonist at Newspapers.com

Apr 25, 1998, page 2 - Times Colonist at Newspapers.com

Apr 27, 1998, page 11 - The Kingston Whig-Standard at Newspapers.com

Hugh Heglin Obituary (2006) - The Times Colonist

If you kill someone in your sleep, are you a murderer?

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