“Ithe right to a ceremony, and his family has the right to worship. But this must be done in simplicity, humility, and with the priest of the parish where the ceremony will take place.”
This is the wish of Sébastien Liautaud, 38, from his hospital bed in Draguignan. Convalescing after difficult weeks, he is watching the funeral organized this Saturday in Nice, his hometown. The funeral of the man who, he said, “screwed up part of [s]for life”and who passed away last Friday.
“Father Jean-Marc Schoepff has left us”, announced the diocese of Nice. This priest from Nice died of a heart attack at the age of 67. Former priest of the Port parish and chaplain at the Stanislas Catholic institution, he was banned from any activity with minors since 2017, and relieved of his charge since 2018. A consequence of the investigation into “sexual assault on minors aged 15 years” which should have brought him before the Nice criminal court on September 9.
“All that for this!”
Scheduled for January 8, this trial was postponed at the request of the defense. It will never happen. Public action was therefore ended against him. Canonical action too, specifies the diocese. Jean-Marc Schoepff remains forever presumed innocent. “A sledgehammer” for his accusers, testifies Sébastien Liautaud.
Out of nine complaints filed, two targeted facts not prescribed. Including his own. “We would have been recognized as victims by the French justice system, wants to believe Sébastien Liautaud, representative of the Libère ta parole collective. vs‘would have been recognition for going on the path to healing. There is a form of non-end. It will definitely be more complicated…”
The seven plaintiffs excluded from the procedure hoped to testify at the bar. HAS start with Thomas Bidart, the first to denounce the touching imposed by Jean-Marc Schoepff. ehearted, he experiences “a feeling of a big waste. My lawyer [Me Vincent Ehrenfeld, ndlr] humpback. Not justice. All that for this!”
Anger, disappointment, bitterness, relief… The sudden disappearance of Jean-Marc Schoepff arouses among his accusers “ambivalent feelings”, says Benoît Valla, 47 years old. “I didn’t think it would shake me this much.” This very charismatic priest from Nice”still has support”, convinced of his innocence. They call for decency.
Controversial subject
The complainants, for their part, invite sobriety. They had a hard time seeing the diocese, led by Mgr Nault, announce on its website the death of Jean-Marc Schoepff. “It’s an announcement like we do each time a priest or deacon passes away.”, we remind the bishopric. Above all, the complainants feared that the bishop himself would preside over the ceremony. “They know what happenedinsists François Bidart. No ecclesiastical authority should perform the ceremony. It would be a spit in the face of the victims!”
According to the bishopric, this should not be the case. Mgr Nault is temporarily disabled by an ankle operation. And the ceremony will not be assured “neither by another bishop, nor by his vicar general, who will be in Cannes”. It is therefore the priest of the Saint-Barthélémy parish who should celebrate the office.
“They protect themselves”
Regardless, the complainants remain very disappointed by the silence of the Church towards them. “There are great announcements, but in practice, they continue to protect themselves and be among themselves.”, indignant Thomas Bidart. His brother François is all the more bitter because he had reported confessions from Jean-Marc Schoepff, behind the closed doors of his office. “And in front of the press and the lawyers, he denied everything outright.”
For everyone, these six years of legal battles “will have been nothing but hassle”. There remains one satisfaction, for Sébastien Liautaud: “We were given the floor. Our fight was not to cause any more victims. There is still an awareness among the clergy. Even in Nice.”
He still aspires for the bishop to receive these victims who will remain presumed. “So that those who are hurt by the Church may hear a word of compassion from the Church.”
