In a Calgary courtroom on Monday, the new lawyer for a sexual assault suspect abandoned his attempt to have a University of Toronto professor recognized as an expert in sexsomnia.
Defence counsel Allan Fay told Justice Jim Eamon that after hearing Dr. Colin Shapiro acknowledge that he may have “conflated” information from two patients in reaching his diagnosis, he no longer wished to have him testify in his client’s case.
“I must confess, sir, that based on what I heard today I am completely taken aback by the evidence given by Dr. Shapiro,” Fay said. “I had no inclination this issue of conflation would arise.”
The lawyer expressed a loss of confidence in Shapiro’s expertise. “I would not call Dr. Shapiro in this matter or any other matter,” Fay stated. “I don’t have any faith in his ability to provide credible and reliable evidence that would assist (the accused).”
Details of the Case
Fay’s client faces charges of sexually assaulting a former intimate partner. The accused’s original lawyer had sought to have Shapiro testify as an expert on sleep disorders involving uncontrolled behaviours. The second lawyer, David Roper, told the court in March that he wanted Shapiro qualified as an expert “in clinical and forensic assessment and diagnoses of parasomnias including sexsomnia.”
Sexsomnia is a term coined by Shapiro to describe instances where individuals engage in sexual acts while asleep. He testified in March that cases of people performing actions during sleep without their knowledge are common, “including driving in their sleep and having sex in their sleep.”
Due to the loss of confidence in the proposed defence expert, Fay has requested an adjournment of his client’s trial. However, Crown prosecutor Kenna Morris argued that Justice Eamon should reject the application, noting that another expert, Dr. Mark Pressman, has already been retained to review Shapiro’s data on the accused and is prepared to testify.
Justice Eamon is scheduled to hear further submissions on Tuesday before deciding whether an adjournment is warranted.
