By admin 
A Houston man has been sentenced to 15 years in prison for fatally stabbing his twin sister while allegedly sleepwalking. The incident took place on September 29, 2021, when Benjamin Elliott, who was 17 at the time, attacked his sister Meghan in their home, according to Fox 26 Houston.
Elliott, now 21, told a 911 operator that he believed he was “dreaming” during the attack. He said he woke up in his sister’s room and found her with a knife in her neck. Court documents reveal that once he realized he was not dreaming, he removed the knife, applied pressure to the wound, and called 911. The emergency operator instructed him to perform CPR until help arrived.
When deputies reached the scene, they found Elliott attempting to resuscitate his sister, but emergency responders pronounced Meghan dead. She had suffered multiple stab wounds, as reported by Fox 26 Houston.
According to KHOU 11, Elliott told an officer at the scene, “I don’t deserve respect because I killed my sister.” A video presented to jurors showed Elliott explaining his actions immediately after the attack: “I freaked out, put the knife down, and placed a pillow on her to try and stop the bleeding. Then I called 911 from my phone.”
During the trial, both the prosecution and defense brought in experts to testify about parasomnias—sleep disorders that can cause sleepwalking and other involuntary behaviors.
Dr. Jerald Simmons, a neurologist who testified for the defense, later expressed disagreement with the jury’s verdict, telling ABC13, “If it wasn’t possible, I wouldn’t have taken this position. There are other cases. They are rare, but they do occur.”
Gill Bikram Singh