the essential
Sentenced in 1997 to life imprisonment for the quadruple murder of members of his family in Sarthe, Dany Leprince has always proclaimed his innocence. This Thursday, January 23, the investigating committee, which had been working on a request to annul his conviction, transmitted the file to the Court of Revision, in the hope of a new trial. Reactions.
“This is very good news but we must remain cautious. The file has been sent to the Court of Review, which shows that the magistrates have listened to the excellent work carried out by my lawyers, Mes Olivier Morice and Missiva Chermak-Felonneau”. Dany Leprince, 67 years old, does not want to give in to euphoria.
Reached by telephone this Thursday, January 23, this man who spent 18 years behind bars for a quadruple murder of which he has continued to proclaim his innocence from the start, keeps a cool head despite a first decision which may open the path to a new trial. Alongside his unwavering supporters, his partner Anie and his ardent defenders, the man nicknamed “The Butcher of Sarthe” never gave up, convinced that justice would “open its eyes, one day or another” .
“Our fight is bearing fruit and we must never despair. My only wish has never changed. I want my innocence to finally be recognized and for justice to succeed in arresting the murderers of my family,” adds Dany Leprince in the middle of A swarm of cameras and journalists came in large numbers to the courthouse, in front of the Court of Cassation where the public decision was rendered this Thursday, January 23 at 2 p.m.
No material element
The Court of Review must now rule on a possible trial in a case which has probably not revealed all its mysteries. No deadline is yet known and the courts still have many months before ruling. Dany Leprince had already filed a first request for review in 2006. But the Court of Review refused, in 2011, to hold a trial. Which never discouraged this man, who once released, settled in Lot-et-Garonne, near Marmande, with his partner. To bear witness to his long fight, Dany Leprince co-wrote a book, in 2022, “They stole my life” (Ed. Flammarion).
-In 1997, Dany Leprince was sentenced to life imprisonment by the Sarthe Assize Court for a bloody quadruple murder committed in 1994. His brother, the latter’s wife and their two children, had been massacred with a knife in their house in Thorigné-sur-Dué. Despite the absence of material evidence, the courts convicted him. Since the start of this affair, Dany Leprince has pointed out the inconsistencies in the file. The trace of a shoe sole (size 41) found at the crime scene is attributed to him even though he wore size 45. And his DNA does not emerge.
New testimony
This time, the investigating committee relied on other elements which surely weighed in the final decision and the referral to the Court of Review. The testimony of the only survivor of the massacre said she doubted her uncle’s guilt, considering the case “inconsistent”. A testimony likely to explore other avenues.
In parallel with this procedure, a judicial investigation opened in Le Mans is still in progress. The ex-wife of Dany Leprince, who gave testimony against her at the time of the events, is today placed under the status of witness assisted by the investigating judge. On this aspect of the affair, Dany Leprince does not wish to comment.
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