Jury told be awake to sleep defence

A Whangarei man charged with indecently assaulting a girl may use the defence that he was sleepwalking when the indecencies occurred, a jury has heard.
Mark Trevor Gyde, 33, sickness beneficiary, is standing trial in the Whangarei District Court charged with two counts of indecent assault on a girl aged between 12 and 16 in October, 2006.
In his opening address to the jury yesterday Crown prosecutor Kim Thomas said Gyde and the girl were watching a video on the couch at a Whangarei house in the early hours of the morning when the offences occurred.
Mr Thomas said Gyde touched the girl. She excused herself then when she came back to the couch he touched her breast.
He said that when interviewed by police Gyde said the offences did not happen, that he was asleep at the time and had no knowledge of anything happening.
Mr Thomas said the defence case may be that Gyde was asleep at the time and may have in effect been sleepwalking and touched the girl or it may have happened accidentally.
In an interview with police, Gyde said ``no way' when asked if he had done the alleged touching.
Gyde then told the interviewing officer that he was asleep at the time and that "if anything happened while I was asleep then it may have happened, but I'm pretty positive it wouldn't have happened".
"But the Crown case is that it did happen when he was awake and that it happened intentionally," Mr Thomas said.
He told the jury members to use their common sense and judgment if Gyde tried to say he had been sleepwalking or asleep when the indecencies happened.
"His eyes were open and he said goodnight to [the girl].
"The Crown says this was not an accident and didn't occur while he was asleep.
"It was too targeted and too deliberate to be an accident," Mr Thomas said.
"There are times when people sleepwalk and open doors and the like and that could raise its head here ... it might be suggested that as well as sleepwalking there are times when they could do sexual things while asleep.
"And if there are occasions when people really can do these sorts of things in their sleep does it apply here?"
Yesterday the girl gave her evidence via video link and said she was "grossed out" by Gyde touching her. She said she made an excuse to go to the toilet.
However, when she came back and sat back down on the couch Gyde asked if she wanted a cuddle. Then, she said, he put his hand up her top.
She said she removed his hand, but he put it back up her top and touched her before undoing her bra. The girl said she left the lounge and later told her mother about the touching.
The defence case in the three-day trial was to open today.