Posted by
CyberMom on Wednesday, January 14, 2009 3:21:23 PM
So, you were tired, picked up the kids, got home from the office, set down your keys and have no idea where they are, huh? You went shopping because you needed something healthy for dinner, but it was a long day at the office, and when you got home, you put everything away, collapsed on the couch, turned on the television and sometime later passed out. When you woke up, you couldn't exactly remember everything you did, what you did, where you went, what you said and now - you can't find the dinner you purchased?? Or - even better, you left it out and it's dethawed, or you shoved it in the freezer in the bag you bought it in, lazily, and just shrugged off the fact that you did something extremely unusual for yourself, knowing you were just 'tired.'
But - if you're not sure what you did on your way home and you can't remember everything you said, where you went or even recall, in any detail, the trip home - how do you know you didn't run a red light, speed, say something that's going to get you in trouble, went somewhere you didn't mean to go or worse? Imagine living like this everyday of your life and depending heavily upon medication to counter it. Imagine waking up one day and finding yourself being accosted by the authorities because you just shoplifted, made a threat on someone's life or worse - got into a car accident? Before you read on - try to imagine every minute of your most tired day these last two weeks - try to remember setting down a pen or pencil right in front of you and suddenly not being able to find it, or going to do a task and suddenly realizing you forgot what you were doing. If you can remember this - at any time in your life - you're about to understand what 1 minute in the life of a narcoleptic is like, and what that means legally - and you should be very worried.
What was once considered a rare disorder is now a world-wide phenomenon known as: Narcolepsy. It is one of the many sleep disorders that affects an estimated 3 million people around the world. In America, it is estimated that over 200,000 individuals suffer from this disorder, but only 50,000 are diagnosed. Even rarer on this list are those narcoleptics who suffer from the many side effects such as cataplexy, hallucinations, sleep paralysis and the now infamous: automatic behavior. Automatic behaviors are cataloged as a parasomnia. We all have them and we have all experienced them at one time or another. Examples include: Driving home and not even realizing how you got there, being thoroughly exhausted and putting things away then finding them in the strangest places without any idea how they got there. This type of behavior is common to extreme exhaustion, a condition which narcoleptics face on an hour by hour, minute by minute basis. Narcoleptics have been misdiagnosed since they have existed. Due to the strange behaviors of hallucinations and 'voices,' that come with a severe lack of REM sleep (and if you don't understand, then imagine this: the possibility of schizophrenia being misdiagnosed as narcolepsy and treated with frontal lobotomies through the middle to late 1800's is at least 75%!!! That's a lot of innocent, dead people); the depression and anxiety from missed sleep; the social anxiety from seizure conditions; the esteem issues from rapid weight changes and so on have caused narcoleptics to work as hard as they can over the years to stay under the radar and avoid prosecution from doctors and even their own families.
It is common for people to mistake narcolepsy as a variety of other symptoms: drug use, alcohol abuse, manic behaviors and more. And, more often than not, narcoleptics go through the gamut of testing for every other disorder in the book until a doctor finally recognizes the totality of behaviors and refers them to a sleep specialist. The truth is: narcolepsy cannot be faked. It is easily tested and diagnosed, but it is still rare enough, that it is not - or in the past - has not been the first symptom on doctors' lists. But, in the past several years, narcolepsy and other sleep disorders (such as sleep walking), have not only hit the radar, but have appeared in news articles almost on a monthly basis. The truth is, what is really appearing in these news articles are the 'parasomnias' related to sleep disorders such as sleepsex, sleepmurder, and most recently, sleep emailing.
The fact is: any behavior that can be conducted awake, can be conducted asleep - and it is NOT limited to autonomous behaviors (redundant, simple behaviors such as setting down keys or brushing of one's teeth). Sadly, these behaviors are also not always seen as autonomous because they are complex in nature. An individual in Canada by the name of Lamb, murdered his mother and attempted to murder his father and woke up some time later covered in blood and immediately turned himself in with no knowledge of what he had done. This is NOT unusual. In fact, a search through case files, state by state, will reveal that thousands of individuals, nation-wide, have gone to the police after finding themselves in a comprimising situation, been caught at the scene of the crime with no recollection of what they had done or were later caught because they tried to clear the evidence having woken up to the frightening scene of murder, unaware of how or why they were there. This has gone on since the day the United States of America was conceived - AND EARLIER. The problem: only in the last ten years have 'sleep disorder' centers been springing up. And, only in the last 5 years have they begun to appear like wildfire. Almost every major hospital and University in America now has a sleep-disorders center, or a neurological specialist who focuses on sleep disorders. Picture 20 years ago - not a single sleep disorders center of any reknown or knowledge or fame and over 85% of all neurologists untrained and unknowledgeable in sleep disorders.
In fact, in the 60's, individuals with sleep disorders were sent to institutions for the insane where they were examined, poked and prodded and eventually diagnosed with the proper disorder after years of analysis. Did these individuals get out? Go look up the "real" records and find out that most, did not. The epidemic of mistreatment of sleep disorders is even more widespread than the mentally/physically handicapped or the elderly. Fortunately, only 40 years later, teenagers and children who develop this disorder are no longer berated and abused by their parents (a common act that still occurs, but not as severe as it used to), but are taken to doctors and properly diagnosed. Adults still suffer from losing jobs and the ADA has made NO leway in requiring workplace accommodations for any sleep disorder, including narcolepsy. Narcoleptics can include doctors, lawyers, police, judges (yes - this has come up - a LOT - in the last ten years), and other people who are trying to be functional, tax-paying members of society. However, they still find themselves in divorce, losing their families, their jobs, their dignities and their lives. But - it gets worse.
The changes in technology have certainly challenged the court systems over the last ten years and the laws are so far behind that the level of ignorance in court rooms and amongst judges, police, jurors, prosecutors and the rest of society is so large, that more crime occurs than not and there are an estimated 25% of all people in prison for computer related crimes who are innocent. Unfortunately, unlike DNA that has been exonerated prisoners at an astonishing rate, computers don't always come with such clear and concise footprints. Contrary to the U.S. Supreme Court's decision that "It is better to let 10 guilty men go free than wronly imprison 1 innocent person," our paranoid society has done just the opposite, and without anything more than 'circumstantial' evidence, people are going to prison for life under the protest of their innocence, or pleading not guilty and taking plea bargains, losing their families, friends and livelihoods. But, even more challenging for the courts is the ever-evolving fields of psychology and neurology.
Neither of these are an exact science, and on a fluctuating basis either condemn people or set them free. There is no clear precedent, and what has been discovered today might be rediagnosed and rediscovered 20 years from now. Unfortunately, people with sleep disorders don't have 20 years from now. They are facing courtrooms on an alarmingly increasing basis. From sleep-rape to sleep-murder, epileptics, sleepwalkers, and others with parasomnias are finding themselves under scrutiny for 'mens rea': criminal intent. Did they intend to do the crime? Some might justify that an unconscious act is an obviously intentional one. Some might say that there is no such thing. But, as I stated earlier, these disorders are clearly identifiable, and don't think that anyone can just 'fake' their way through it. In fact - if someone tries, good luck. They can be connected to machines that will discover the truth. So, how do you tell if someone is acting intentionally because they are unconscious and it's their 'unconscious,' desire? Well, given that blanket determination and Freud's theory regarding the oedipal complex - we're ALL in danger! Eventually, we'll kill our fathers, and try to rape our mothers. But, how many of you who can remember your dreams can say that you've NEVER had a nightmare?
What if you think someone's trying to kill you and in defense, you automatically fight back? Have you never had a dream based on sex or violence ever? If not - I would dare say that either 1) You're not human, or 2) You're lying, or 3) You have no memory of it - and would be in even MORE danger than those who can at least recall some of their dreams. Now we come to emailing. This phenomenon is not new either (although it was recently and incorrectly reported by ABC that it is). Michelle Morandin, in March 2005, performed an analysis on Narcolepsy and automatic behavior and discovered to what extremely complicated extent automatic behaviors can occur. In fact, in the 60's, there is evidence of narcoleptics writing detailed letters and performing detailed tasks that they have no recollection of. Some of these were considered "incomplete," because they were not done without some level of intereference from being 'asleep,' while many, many others were considered 'complete,' because they were tasks performed very well and without any indication of the individual being asleep. This includes conversations, writing letters, walking around, driving, working and much, much more. But, on almost every occassion, something would be done or said, that while done functionally, was unusual for that person's personality.
For example, they may have made outrageously crude and cruel comments, argued or acted loving and sexual. At work, they may have mixed up formulas or patterns and functionally completed the 'wrong' task. They may have driven perfectly fine getting home, but at unsual speeds or with unsual driving patterns. How does this bode for the sleep disorders folks legally? Not well at all. A review of the NHTSA manual for visual recognition of driving under the influence, every last indicator is identical to an individual who has fallen asleep. While still dangerous, it is currently not a crime - but it will be treated as one. Shoplifting, even while on camera being asleep - is still illegal (even if the individual has the money and offers to pay or return an item for which they had no need, such as dog food for someone who owns no animals!!). But, what about sleep emailing or surfing the internet? Now the real trouble starts - two areas of law, technology and psychology, that are so severely incapable of keeping up with the curve, that the laws being relied upon for set precendences are completely inapplicable.
What if I send an email to someone claiming I want to kill them or I want to die? If I did it while asleep - I could have been dreaming. I could have had the television on at the same time and was being severely influenced by these matters. Worse, I would have no recollection of doing it, no reason to go look it up to see if I sent it (because I don't remember it), and no reason to believe that I would do that - challenging my own sanity!! But, in today's day and age, cyberhacking, viruses, pop-ups of an illicit nature and other such elements have become so commonplace, that it is an accepted given and the antivirus, antiphishing, anti-this and that industries have soared like eagles. What about this? How would someone who was surfing the internet, and passed out, but continued on surfing unconsciously, would they be able to handle pop-ups or redirects? Would they know where they're surfing or what they were doing? Would they know what they were doing during an ATM transaction or when working on a cash register?
One might argue that individuals with parasomnias shouldn't drive - but should anyone who is tired, drive? Should we take away everyone's license or install a device in every car to determine if someone is tired? Don't we have ENOUGH laws already? If the individuals can be on controlled medication, during the daytime, then they should have the same rights as everyone else. However, if anyone is disabled, such as a sleepwalkers, they make provisions to help them from walking at night. The same provisions could be made for others suffering from parasomnias as soon as the government is willing to recognize their disorder and begin to offer assistance. In the meantime -
If someone is impoverished and starving, and they steal bread: then they knowingly steal - there is a moralistic question, but the law is clear.
If someone is asleep and disabled with parasomnias out of their control, and they commit a crime: then they did NOT knowingly do anything wrong and may have no recollection of it. There is no question of innocence, only of whether or not they need added help to keep from doing the same act or ADA allowances to assist in their lives, but the law is NOT clear.
-Would you put someone who is a sleepwalker in prison for trying to commit suicide because they walked out a second story window? The law says you have to. Some might think it's hard to believe that would happen because they don't understand the disorder - but because the scientists have finally determined, after thousands of years of this disorder existing, that it 'exists,' the courts accept the lack of mens rea argument. Would you put a mentally handicapped person in prison because they saw a candybar they wanted and took it, not understanding that it was wrong? What about a child? We don't punish the disabled. America was founded by misfits of society seeking freedom from persecution because they believed and acted differently than society expected of its usual groups. How is this different for the disabled?
The laws, however, are slow to recognize parasomnias and even slower to keep up with technology. Nobody wants to create a loophole for criminals - period. But, ask yourself this: if you were to wake up one day with a sleep disorder such as narcolepsy (and yes - it really does happen that way - you wake up one day with it), and a criminal were to see you had it and knew that the laws were not yet up to speed on the topic, wouldn't we be creating a loophole by allowing them to falsely incriminate the innocent? It happens EVERY day! Mentally handicapped, chidlren, elderly, epileptics and so on are accused of things they did not do, and it allows criminals to get away with crimes. It makes us better understand why the Supreme Court wanted to keep innocent people out of prison: because if we don't, the guilty ones are left wandering free and are encouraged to continue falsely incriminating the innocent.
If you've read this whole article, and you think it's time that the law, "wakes up," then write to your Senators and your Congressmen - tell them that this cannot continue. Sorry that the courts are overwhelmed - but maybe if they quit making up new laws, without voter input, on a daily basis, to control every facet of our lives, the courts won't be overwhelmed. Quit wasting tax payer money for cops to perform road-side speed traps that cost us $60,000 per year and make only 1 tenth of that back in fines, and then if jail occurs, cost us even more - and work on 'REAL' crimes. Quit allowing the prosecutors of this fine country prosecute cases based SOLELY on circumstantial evidence? To do so - REALLY undermines the principals of justice. Require them to NOT force blanket laws with little applicability or pass judgments on presumptions of guilt versus facts of guilt, especially when dealing with disabled people such as sleepwalkers, narcoleptics and others, until they can get caught up and be rewritten, under the scientifically provable facts associated with sleep disorders (that can't be faked), to develop programs so that we don't falsely incriminate people.
This ISN'T the 1800's. We do NOT lobotomize people anymore!! At least - we're not supposed to. We are supposed to be a civilized society that seeks to help those who suffer from disorders and disabilities. A society that seeks to keep them productive members of our society and make use of their skills so that we can all work together. The scales of justice cannot be weighed down with gold bars on the prosecution's side merely because the government has the money to prosecute but the innocent are disabled and can barely afford their medication!!
Justice is blind - but it shouldn't be ignorant. It's time to wake up. And, only - with YOUR written input, your courage and your compassion, will this country change - yes - 1 person at a time - it has to start somewhere. I've started here - what will you do next?