Case law citations must be properly formatted and fully embedded within your post. Do not provide a citation at the bottom of your post or as a "Reference". I will be one of the defense attorneys defending. Mrs.Cogdon and her daughter Pat were both asleep that evening. Mrs. Cogdon stated she was having a nightmare, yet it felt like a real-life experience. She felt as if her daughter was in danger and reacted as if she was protecting her daughter. She stated she thought her daughter was surrounded and that she needed to save her. This is a sleeping condition that is called Homicidal Somnambulism. This is a behavior disorder that happens while in a deep sleep and manifests itself involuntarily. It is also known as homicidal sleepwalking. This is where an individual awakens to discover they have murdered someone yet have no recollection of the actual event. This can manifest itself in several ways such as REM sleep disorder, Fugue States, and Episodic Wandering. These disorders cannot fall under "Actus Reus" as by definition is the act or omission that compromises the physical elements of a crime and must be voluntarily committed. Samaha, J. (2005). Criminal law (12th ed.). Thomson/Wadsworth. 

Since Mrs. Cogdon was psychologically and physically unaware as to what was happening this cannot be brought into this case. Mrs. Cogdon had no prior history of violent behavior; she had no pre-meditation to commit the crime as she only believed she was defending her daughter. She has no recollection of what happened. She was clearly not in a conscious state of mind therefore she cannot be held accountable for murder. I am requesting that The American Academy of sleep medicine be brought before the court to shed light on this condition that Mrs. Cogdon is clearly suffering from. I am also asking for a full psychiatric evaluation of Mrs. Cogdon to also enlighten us on how these conditions can affect a person's overall behavior and actions and that they were involuntary on her behalf.