Complex sentence: In the Criminal Law, automatism is a unique defence in which a criminal defendant claims that their wrongful acts were unintentional because they resulted from movements that were beyond their control, such as reflex actions, or acts done while sleepwalking.
Split into simpler sentences: In the Criminal Law, automatism is a unique defence. The substance of the defence is that the accused should be excused from liability because these consequences resulted from movements that were beyond the defendant's control, such as reflex actions, or movements made while sleepwalking.