Defense lawyer: Sexsomnia

Son (8) raped: No prison sentence for public prosecutor

In Germany, a former public prosecutor raped his own son (8) (symbolic image).

(Bild: APA/dpa/Boris Roessler)

A court ruling is currently causing a stir in Germany: Although a former public prosecutor had raped his own son, the 53-year-old was only given a suspended sentence and is free to go. He justified himself in court by saying that he had been sleepwalking.

In view of the brutality of the crime, which was directed against his own flesh and blood, the suspended sentence is difficult for many to comprehend. The crime took place in 2019: The eight-year-old son had slept in his parents' bed with his father while his mother spent the night with her baby in the next room. The assault took place in the middle of the night: The boy was torn from his sleep when his father grabbed him by the penis and also touched his anus. 

Child forcibly forced to have oral sex
M. then pressed his genitals into the boy's face and forcibly forced him to have oral sex. When his wife confronted him the next morning with his son's accusations, he pretended not to remember anything. He finally went to work and reported himself to his supervisor. After a period of sick leave, he was given early retirement. His wife divorced him.

Defense lawyer explained the crime with the illness "sexsomnia"
The former public prosecutor also insisted in court that he could not remember the incident and was not conscious. His lawyer argued that he suffered from sexsomnia, a sleep disorder in which those affected perform sexual acts on themselves and others even when unconscious. When they wake up, they have no memory of what happened.

The verdict upsets many users on social media, as in this post: 

This theory was supported by an ex-girlfriend of the accused: "When I heard about the allegations, I remembered similar situations in our partnership around 20 years ago," the 42-year-old witness explained in court. She reported several incidents in which the 53-year-old had been in a deep sleep during sex. She described this as "sexual intercourse while sleepwalking". 

When I heard about the allegations, I remembered similar situations in our relationship some 20 years ago.

Exfreundin des Angeklagten vor Gericht

Witness and ex-girlfriend supported thesis
However, the presiding judge in the courtroom in Lübeck, Helga von Lukowicz, found the witness's testimony unbelievable. "We are convinced that the events described by the witness did not take place." The positive memories of the time together after a successful separation often outweighed the negative ones - this could have prompted the witness to make a benevolent statement. The wife, now divorced from the defendant, had never noticed sexsomnia in M. - the court assumed that the defense had tried to construct such situations. The trial expert also suspected that the defendant's professional and personal problems had led to the crime: "The violent abuse of his son gave him back his sense of power for a moment," the judge summarized her theory.

The violent abuse of his son gave him back his sense of power for a moment.

Richterin vor Gericht

First expert witness believed sexsomnia theory 
Explosive: there was almost no trial at all. Three proceedings had already been discontinued by the public prosecutor's office in Kiel "due to doubts about culpability". In an initial expert opinion, the sexsomnia thesis had been assessed as plausible. It was only thanks to the persistence of the son's lawyers that M. had to stand trial after all, writes the Frankfurter Allgemeine.

Much lost
The comparatively lenient sentence surprised many observers: the former public prosecutor was sentenced to 18 months' probation - the verdict is not yet final.

The judges consider the crime to be a "less serious case", as it was a spontaneous act in a difficult life situation. The accused has lost a lot as a result - in addition to his job and marriage, he would also lose his pension if the verdict becomes final, reported the newspaper "Bild".