Five unanswered questions from the Pelicot trial

French rape subsister Gisèle Pelicot walked retired of a tribunal successful confederate France for the past clip connected Thursday aft her ex-husband was jailed for 20 years for drugging and raping her, and inviting dozens of strangers to besides maltreatment her implicit astir a decade.

Dominique Pelicot, 72, was recovered blameworthy of each charges by a justice successful Avignon. He was connected proceedings with 50 different men, each of whom were recovered blameworthy of astatine slightest 1 charge, though their jailhouse presumption were little than what prosecutors had demanded.

Although the proceedings is over, determination are inactive questions lingering implicit the Pelicot lawsuit and what happens next.

When she climbed the steps of the Avignon courthouse for the archetypal clip successful September, nary 1 knew Gisèle Pelicot's name. Over the people of the adjacent 15 weeks, her fame arsenic a rape unfortunate who refused to beryllium ashamed of what had been done to her grew vertiginously.

By the clip she near the tribunal connected Thursday, crowds of hundreds were chanting her sanction and her representation was connected the beforehand pages of newspapers worldwide.

She is present possibly 1 of the best-known women successful France. This means that though she has changed her name, it volition beryllium intolerable for her to instrumentality to the anonymity that served her truthful good arsenic she tried to rebuild a beingness pursuing the revelation of her husband's crimes.

Gisèle is not the archetypal idiosyncratic whose unimaginable suffering has turned her into an icon. At large idiosyncratic cost, she has go the awesome of a combat she ne'er chose. It seems unlikely, then, that she volition privation to go an outspoken activistic against sex violence, oregon a salient feminist figure. Rather, she whitethorn spell backmost to what she has said has ever fixed her solace: music, agelong walks and cocoa – arsenic good arsenic her 7 grandchildren.

"At the commencement of the proceedings she said: 'If I past 2 weeks, that volition beryllium a lot.' In the end, she made it to 3 and a fractional months," her lawyer Stephane Babonneau said. "Now, she is astatine peace, and relieved it's each over."

Days aft Dominique Pelicot's crimes came to light, his girl Caroline Darian was summoned to the constabulary presumption and shown photos of an seemingly unconscious pistillate dressed successful unfamiliar lingerie. Later, she said her beingness had "stopped" erstwhile she realised she was looking astatine photos of herself.

Her begetter has ever denied touching her, but Caroline – whose anguish and devastation were evident successful galore tribunal sessions – has said she would ne'er judge him and accused him of looking astatine her "with incestuous eyes".

But the deficiency of impervious of the maltreatment Caroline is convinced was inflicted connected her has led her to accidental she is "the forgotten victim" of the trial. That conception has visibly seeped into her narration with her mother. In her memoir – published aft her father's apprehension – she accused Gisèle of not showing her capable support, implicitly choosing to broadside with her rapist ex-husband implicit her daughter.

Although Gisèle and her children person ever sat adjacent to 1 different successful court, often whispering huddled together, determination person been signs of the toll the proceedings has taken connected their relationship.

On Friday, Caroline's member David highlighted – arsenic helium has done earlier – that the proceedings had not conscionable been astir Gisèle but astir their full "annihilated family".

"Us children felt forgotten," helium said. "Very honestly I consciousness that portion our lawyers did a singular occupation connected the defence of our mother, we were a small spot little taken into account."

In her memoir, Caroline lamented Gisèle's "denial arsenic a coping mechanism".

"Because of my father," she wrote, "I americium present losing my mother."

Apart from Dominique, each of the jailhouse presumption handed down to the defendants were little than what prosecutors had demanded.

Several defence lawyers were visibly satisfied, meaning it is improbable they volition promote their clients to entreaty against their sentences. A antheral called Jean-Pierre Maréchal got 12 years – 5 little than prosecutors had asked – and his lawyer Patrick Gontard told the BBC it was "out of the question" helium would appeal.

The months oregon years the men spent successful pre-trial detention volition number towards their full sentences, meaning that immoderate whitethorn beryllium freed soon if they person served their minimum term.

One antheral who was facing 17 years ended up being sentenced to 8 years' imprisonment, and his lawyer Roland Marmillot told the BBC that due to the fact that helium had already spent respective years successful jailhouse it was apt helium would beryllium released comparatively soon.

Still, by the greeting aft the proceedings closed, 2 men each jailed for 8 years had already appealed. More are expected to travel implicit the adjacent 10 days – the play of clip appeals tin beryllium lodged for.

Dominique Pelicot has admitted to assaulting and attempting to rape a 23-year-old property agent, known by the pseudonym Marion, successful the suburbs of Paris successful 1999. A cloth imbued with ether was enactment implicit her rima but she managed to combat the attacker disconnected and helium fled. It was lone successful 2021, aft helium was arrested for the crimes helium inflicted connected his woman Gisèle, that Pelicot's DNA was cross-checked with a speck of humor recovered connected Marion's shoe, and helium admitted to his guilt.

He has, however, denied immoderate work successful different acold lawsuit – the 1991 rape and execution of different young property agent, Sophie Narme, for which determination is nary DNA. Investigators person argued that the 2 cases contiguous excessively galore similarities to beryllium coincidental.

Other acold cases wherever akin modi operandi were utilized are besides being looked astatine again.

"There volition beryllium a 'before' and determination volition beryllium an 'after' the Pelicot trial," 1 Parisian antheral told the BBC successful the aboriginal days of the trial.

For many, this sentiment has lone grown implicit the past fewer months during which the aggravated media sum of the Pelicot proceedings generated countless conversations astir rape, consent and sex violence.

"What we request to bash is person much, overmuch harsher sentences," Nicolas and Mehdi, 2 Mazan residents, told the BBC. They said they were "disgusted" erstwhile they recovered retired 1 of the defendants was a antheral they had played shot with.

"With longer sentences they'll astatine slightest they'll deliberation doubly earlier doing worldly similar this," they said, adding that it was "crazy unfair" that immoderate of the men could travel retired of jailhouse successful the adjacent fewer months.

It is worthy noting, however, that the hazard of incurring a 20-year situation condemnation for aggravated rape did not deter Dominique Pelicot from offering his unconscious woman to beryllium raped by strangers helium met online.

There person been calls to betterment French authorities connected rape to see consent, but that has stalled successful the past and would instrumentality sizeable enactment successful the existent divided French parliament.

Some person argued that schools person a work to amended thatch caller generations astir sex, emotion and consent. Béatrice Zavarro, Dominique Pelicot's lawyer, has said she believes "change volition not travel from the Ministry of Justice but from the Ministry of Education."

Françoise, a nonmigratory of the country wherever Gisèle and Dominique Pelicot utilized to live, told the BBC she thinks a mode indispensable beryllium recovered to span the spread betwixt what children are taught successful schools and the benignant of worldly they person entree to online.

"Young radical are truthful exposed to enactment connected the net and astatine the aforesaid clip schools are precise prudish," she said. "They should beryllium overmuch much unfastened and frank to lucifer and explicate what kids see."

What these exchanges amusement is that, portion it volition instrumentality clip earlier immoderate changes go tangible, a speech has present started. It volition proceed until determination are nary much unanswered questions.