Three years in prison, one of which is closed. The judgment rendered by the Nanterre criminal court against Dominique Boutonnat is particularly severe. Tried for sexual assault on his godson, twenty-nine years his junior, the president of the National Cinema Center (CNC) received a harsher sentence than the requisitions requested by the prosecutor during the hearing on June 14, which were three years suspended. Malory (1), who denounced the facts perpetrated in 2020, during a vacation on the Greek island of Kea, also sees his damage compensated to the tune of 10,000 euros. “This case is the perfect demonstration of what sexual assault is. The abuse of authority and the notion of control have been recognized by the courts. My client’s victim status was admitted, which is what he expected from this trial. It’s a big relief for him.” said Caroline Toby, the plaintiff’s lawyer.
Resignation in an internal email
The target of numerous calls for his resignation since the facts were revealed, Dominique Boutonnat, 54, has always clung to the head of the CNC, which he had headed since 2019. In July 2022, the President of the Republic, Emmanuel Macron, even renewed his mandate, provoking the anger of a large section of French cinema.
But this Friday, the producer finally announced his resignation in an internal email, addressed to his teams, and that Release was able to consult: “The Nanterre criminal court has just read the judgment by which it pronounced my sentence. I would like to reaffirm my innocence regarding the facts attributed to me and I am therefore appealing this judgment. Although the alleged facts are unrelated to my professional situation, I know that the publicity given to them may have created a particular context for the CNC, particularly in recent years. This is why I would like, today, to thank all the agents of our establishment for having, during the duration of this procedure, ensured the perfect continuity of the public service for which they are responsible. However, I have the feeling that today’s court decision, which I contest, could be likely, despite the presumption of innocence which applies until the exhaustion of legal remedies, to make it more difficult to accomplishment of your tasks in the future. This is why, in order not to harm, even if only in terms of image, the institution for which the President of the Republic has entrusted me with responsibility, I have decided to cease the exercise. from my duties as of today.” It is Olivier Henrard, the current deputy general director of the institution, who will act in the interim until a future appointment.
“I can’t get away”
In August 2020, after a boozy evening and a swim in the pool of a villa at sunrise, the president of the CNC followed his godson to his room, before becoming very insistent. Malory, now 25, described the facts in court as follows, according to reports consulted by Release : Dominique Boutonnat “lies down next to me telling me that he is very tired. […] He starts talking about our relationship, insisting that we have an incredible relationship, that it’s crazy, that it’s crazy, that it’s something to protect. As he says this, he begins to move closer to me. […] He put his mouth on mine and tried to insert his tongue. I don’t do anything to revive it, I remain stoic.” He pursues “I feel him starting to get excited, his breathing is intensifying. He’s totally grinding against me. I realize he is naked. […] Everything happens very quickly and I can’t get away. He kisses me on the neck, on the chest.” The producer then masturbated him “violently”, and tried to force him to perform oral sex on her, grabbing her head and pulling it towards his penis. An account that the Nanterre Criminal Court therefore considered convincing.
During the short-lived work of the commission of inquiry into sexual violence in cinema, torpedoed by the dissolution of the National Assembly pronounced on June 9 by Emmanuel Macron, the Ecologists MP, Francesca Pasquini, asked Olivier Henrard, who represented the CNC in place of Dominique Boutonnat, if he was aware of problematic behavior by his boss. This question followed an investigation published a few days earlier by Release, reporting uncomfortable scenes that occurred during evenings or cultural events. Under oath, the new director of the CNC then responded: “For my part, I have never witnessed any behavior from my president likely to make me uncomfortable, or to cause difficulty for the institution he represents.”
(1) The first name has been changed.
Update : at 7 p.m., with the statement of the plaintiff’s lawyer.
