Caught Napping!

'Sleepwalker' beats drink drive rap

A Swedish man was acquitted of drink driving after a court said it couldn't rule out the possibility he was sleepwalking.

The 51-year-old man, who was not identified, had a blood alcohol level nearly 10 times the country's legal limit, reports The Local.
The man said he awoke late one evening in the driver's seat of his car, which had catapulted into a ditch in Karlskrona in southern Sweden.

He was wearing a nightshirt, track pants and slippers and told officers he was on his way to replenish his supply of snus, a wet snuff tobacco product.

The man later claimed to have no memory of initial post-accident interview, only that "he spoke with a police officer and that he was in shock and extremely intoxicated when the interview took place".

In tossing out the drink driving charges, Blekinge District Court cited the opinion of the man's doctor who said he may have suffered from sleepwalking.

The doctor said the man had previously displayed what could be interpreted as sleepwalking after taking the same pills he took the night of the accident.

As a result, the court said: "It cannot be shown beyond a reasonable doubt that the man was aware of his actions when he drove his car."

The man's attorney, Christer Holmqvist, said he wasn't surprised by the verdict but added that he expected prosecutors to appeal.

"I won't be surprised if it's appealed. I understand there is a certain amount of public pressure on a prosecutor to gain a conviction," he said.