2. Is it rape if I have sexual intercourse with a woman who is asleep?

2. Is it rape if I have sexual intercourse with a woman who is asleep?

Rape is sexual intercourse with a woman without her consent. The accused must be shown to have known she was not consenting or to have been reckless whether she consented or not. As a fact a woman who is sleeping is not in a position to give consent. The sexual intercourse will be rape unless there is a genuine belief in consent. It is hard to see how a defence of genuine belief can succeed in such a situation where the female and the man are strangers to each other. At the very least a man who has sexual intercourse with a woman who is sleeping is reckless whether or not she consents to that sexual intercourse.