Man Shoots Self In Leg While Sleepwalking

Concord, NH — A New Hampshire man accidentally shot himself in the leg while he was sleepwalking.

A woman called police around 12:30 am Tuesday and said that her husband had shot himself in the knee. She said he appeared to be sleepwalking, and that he woke up when the gun went off.

“We’d like to know what happened and have more details, but the only witness was the person who was shot, and it sounds like he doesn’t know exactly what happened,” said Lt. Timothy O’Malley.

The victim was hospitalized with non life-threatening injuries, Concord Police Chief John Duval said. He said the case remains under investigation, but that he doesn’t expect any charges to be filed. In order for charges to be warranted, authorities have to show intent, he said.

“This is a good opportunity to remind our citizens of safe storage of weapons and other practices,” Duval said. “If this is an accident, accidents do happen.”

Last year, a Connecticut man who was accused of robbing a woman at knifepoint in an elevator at Mohegan Sun said that he was sleepwalking at the time of the crime. Winston Riley said he remembered falling asleep on March 18, and later being violently woken up by the sound of a woman screaming. The woman told police that Riley tried to steal her purse.

Riley’s lawyer, Nicholas D’Amato, said he confirmed with his client’s family that he has had a sleepwalking problem since he was a child. But police said the 27-year-old confessed to the crime when he was arrested, telling officers he “just wanted some money.” D’Amato later said his client’s confession didn’t make sense, and that he was a married man with no criminal record.

“I told the judge and prosecutor … ‘Do you honestly think he woke up one morning, drove across the state and decided to rob a woman in a place full of security cameras?”‘ D’Amato said. “It doesn’t make sense if you think about it rationally.”