Automatism

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The defence of automatism:

Automatism was defined in Bratty v Attorney-General for Northern Ireland (1961) as...

"An act done by the muscles without any control by the mind, such as spasm, a reflex action or a convulsion; or an act done by a person who is not conscious of what he is doing such as act done whilst suffering concussion or whilst sleep-walking"

This is a defence becuause the act is not voluntary. The defendant does not have the required mens rea for the offence and it must…

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