State v. Caddell
Supreme Court of North Carolina
215 S.E.2d 348 (1975)
Willis Tony Caddell (defendant) forced a 14-year-old girl into his car from her own driveway, drove her to a wooded area, attempted to rape her, and then fled. Charged with kidnapping, Caddell pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity and testified he remembered nothing from that day; a psychiatrist described him as having a "sociopathic personality" marked by meanness and extreme aggressiveness toward others. The trial court instructed the jury that Caddell could be found not guilty only if it found he was "completely unconscious" during the offense, but that he bore no burden to prove that unconsciousness. Convicted and sentenced to life imprisonment, Caddell appealed, arguing the trial court's instruction was error.
Whether the burden rests on the defendant to establish the complete, affirmative defense of unconsciousness.