A French court has found Dominique Pelicot guilty of repeatedly drugging and raping his wife over decades, and inviting dozens of men to participate in the abuse in their family home.
Judges at the court in Avignon sentenced the 72-year-old Pelicot, who had admitted to the crimes, to the maximum penalty of 20 years in prison on Thursday.
They also convicted the 50 other defendants tried alongside him and handed down sentences of three to 15 years, some of which were shorter than the lengths that prosecutors had requested.
The landmark trial has shocked and moved people in France and around the world not only because of the horrific nature of the crimes, but also because of the steely determination of Gisèle Pelicot, the 71-year-old woman at the centre of the case.
The mother of three demanded that the trial be open to the public and that grisly videos of the abuse taken by her now ex-husband be shown in court, in evidence that undermined the defendants’ denials.
Despite the trauma she has experienced, Pelicot confronted the men directly, attending every day of the three-month trial and declaring her desire to catalyse changes in French society.
“I’ve decided not to be ashamed. I’ve done nothing wrong,” she testified in October. “They are the ones who must be ashamed,” she said.
Dominique Pelicot attracted the men via an online advertisement and invited them to the family home to take part in the rapes. He admitted he had covertly given his wife powerful sleeping pills.
She had no idea about the abuse until police showed her the videos during the investigation.
The case has reverberated far outside the courthouse by triggering soul-searching in France over how police and prosecutors handle sexual harassment and rape allegations, given that very few such cases lead to convictions.
That the accused were aged 22 to 70 and included a fireman, journalist, a student and retirees, also showed how rapists fit no standard profile.
Lawyers and politicians have rekindled a debate over whether France should revamp the legal definition of rape to include the requirement to obtain affirmative consent.
At present, consent is not explicitly mentioned, which can complicate rape cases in which women freeze or do not speak during an attack, including situations in which they have been drugged.
Feminist groups held rallies in support of Gisèle Pelicot across the country, and graffiti artists painted her likeness on city walls. Throughout the trial, people gathered each day to applaud and hand her flowers when she entered and left the courthouse.
Outside the court on Thursday, people gathered to support Gisèle Pelicot, holding signs that read “Thank you Gisèle” and “We are all Gisèle”.
But after the sentences were handed down, anger rippled through the crowd because many saw the sentences as too light, with shouts of “shame on the justice system”.
After leaving the courtroom, Gisèle Pelicot spoke before a scrum of reporters, surrounded by her children and grandchildren.
Thanking her lawyers, advocacy groups and other survivors who wrote to support her, she said her thoughts went out to victims who suffered in the shadows. “I want you to know we are fighting the same battle,” she said.
She added: “By opening the doors to the trial, I wanted society to seize the opportunity to follow the arguments. I never regretted the decision.”
Related News :