Ex-president Nicolas Sarkozy has stated that his time behind bars has been “gruelling” and a “nightmare” as he was present via video link at a court hearing regarding his request to complete his jail term at home.
Legal Proceeding from Prison
Sarkozy, dressed in a navy blue suit, was visible on screen from jail on Monday, positioned at a desk with his legal representatives beside him. He informed the judges: “I want to commend all the correctional officers, who are exceptionally humane, and who have eased this difficult situation – because it is a horrific experience.”
Background of the Case
Sarkozy entered the correctional facility in Paris on 21 October, after being handed a half-decade imprisonment for illegal collaboration over a scheme to secure financing for his 2007 presidential election campaign from the government of the late Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi.
He has appealed against the ruling, but judges ruled that because of the “exceptional gravity” of his conviction, he had to be incarcerated while the legal challenge took its course.
Unprecedented Importance
The former leader, who served as France’s rightwing president between 2007 and 2012, is the first former head of an EU country to be imprisoned in prison, and the first French postwar leader to be incarcerated.
Emotional Testimony
The former president stated to the judges from prison: “I never had any idea or desire to ask Mr Gaddafi for any kind of financing … I will not admit to something I didn’t do … I could not have foreseen that at this stage of life, I’d be in prison. It’s an challenge that has been imposed on me. I admit it’s hard, it’s extremely challenging. It has an impact on any prisoner because it’s gruelling.”
He stated he would not attempt to enter into contact with any accused individuals or witnesses in the case. He declared: “I’m French, I love my country, my family is in France. This situation has caused them pain a lot.”
Legal Team Comments
His legal representative Jean-Michel Darrois, sitting next to him in the remote connection facility, stated: “Being in solitary confinement has been extremely difficult for him.” He commented on Sarkozy: “He’s a strong, robust and courageous man and this detention has caused him great suffering.”
In court, a different legal representative, Christophe Ingrain, who had seen him daily, asserted Sarkozy would be more secure out of prison than inside. “He has received threats against his life, has heard screaming at night and the emergency response in a neighbouring cell when a prisoner self-harmed,” he stated.
Present Situation
The state prosecutor Damien Brunet requested that Sarkozy’s petition for freedom be granted. The court will reveal its ruling on Monday afternoon.
Incarceration Details
The former president has been held in solitary confinement for his own security, in an individual cell of about 9 sq metres, with his own washing facility and restroom. Security personnel are stationed nearby to protect him.
Accounts indicated that he had been eating only yoghurt in prison as he was concerned any meal might have been tampered with. He had been given the opportunity to prepare his own meals but declined the offer.
Support from the Public
Sarkozy’s social media account last week posted a video of numerous correspondences, cards and packages it claimed had been sent to him, including a collection, a sweet treat and a volume. “No letter will go unanswered,” his account announced. “The end of the story has not yet been written.”
Personal Belongings
The former leader brought with him a biography of Jesus as well as The Count of Monte Cristo, Alexandre Dumas’s novel in which an innocent man is sentenced to jail but escapes to take revenge.
Legal Proceedings Details
During Sarkozy’s three-month trial, the state attorney had told the court that Sarkozy engaged in a “corrupt agreement” of dishonesty with one of the most unspeakable dictators of the last three decades.
The accused maintained his innocence and said he had not been part of a illegal scheme to seek election funding from Libya.
He was found not guilty of three distinct accusations of dishonesty, improper handling of state money and illegal election campaign funding. After the state prosecutor also challenged these acquittals, Sarkozy will be judged again on all the charges next year, including criminal conspiracy.
Previous Convictions
Although the allegations of a clandestine financial agreement with the North African government formed the most significant legal case Sarkozy had encountered, he had already been found guilty in two separate cases and lost France’s highest distinction, the national recognition.
The former president had previously become the initial ex-leader forced to wear an electronic tag after being convicted in a different matter of dishonesty and influence peddling. In that situation, he was given a 12-month sentence but was able to serve it with an ankle monitor attached to his leg. He had the device for a quarter year before being allowed limited freedom.
