French judges on Thursday found 51 defendants guilty of the mass rape of Gisèle Pelicot during decades of abuse orchestrated by her ex-husband Dominique Pelicot. Gisèle Pelicot said she respected the verdict of the court and did not regret her decision to make the trial public. Read our liveblog to see how the day's events unfolded.
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French judges on Thursday sentenced Dominique Pelicot to a maximum 20 years of imprisonment for drugging and raping his ex-wife Gisèle Pelicot and allowing other men to rape her while she was unconscious, in abuse that lasted nearly a decade.
The sentence against Dominique Pelicot was declared after he was found guilty of all charges against him. At age 72, it could mean that he spends the rest of his life in prison.
All 51 defendants in the trial have been found guilty.Two are guilty of sexual assault, two are guilty of attempted rape and 47 of the defendants are guilty of aggravated rape.
A cheer went up outside the court in Avignon as news of the first guilty verdicts filtered out. Crowds gathered in the city in the South of France in support of Gisèle Pelicot, who has become a symbol of courage and resilience.
Gisèle Pelicot said she respected the verdict of the court and did not regret her decision to make the trial public. "I want to thank everyone who has supported me during this period," she said.
Spain PM Sanchez hails 'dignity' of Gisèle Pelicot
Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez on Thursday hailed Gisèle Pelicot for her "dignity" after a French court jailed her ex-husband for 20 years for committing and orchestrating mass rapes against her.
"What dignity. Thank you, Gisèle Pelicot. Shame must change sides," Sanchez wrote on X, using a slogan that has symbolised Pelicot's courage for insisting the trial that has horrified France and resonated worldwide be made public.
Gisèle Pelicot says respects verdict in French mass rape trial
Gisèle Pelicot said on Thursday she respected the verdict of the court in the case after some voiced objections that the sentences were too lenient.
"I respect the court and the decision of its verdict," Gisele Pelicot told reporters in her first comments after the judgement was issued, adding she "never regretted" opening the trial to the public and was now thinking of the "unrecognised victims whose stories often remain in the shadows".
She added she believed in a future where "everyone, woman and man, can live in harmony".
Gisèle Pelicot says trial was 'very difficult' but she 'never regretted' decision to make it public
Gisèle Pelicot said she did not regret the decision to make her trial public as she spoke to the press following the sentencing of 51 men accused of her mass rape.
"It is with profound emotion that I am here, the trial was a very difficult ordeal," Gisèle Pelicot said. "I want to thank everyone who has supported me during this period. I never regretted decision to make trial public."
Pelicot said that she "led the fight" in the courts for her grandchildren and expressed support for other victims of sexual assault. "We share the same fight", she said.
Gisèle Pelicot says trial was 'very difficult' after all 51 men found guilty of rapes, sexual assaults
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz on Thursday saluted the bravery of Gisèle Pelicot for demanding a public and open trial of her ex-husband who was convicted of orchestrating her mass rape.
"The shame must change sides. Thank you, Gisèle Pelicot!" Scholz said on X, echoing Pelicot's own words. "You courageously went from anonymity into the public eye and fought for justice. You gave women around the world a strong voice. The shame always lies with the perpetrator."
'Disappointment' over sentences for France mass rape trial defendants
France 24 Selina Sykes reports from Avignon.
Guilty verdicts in France's mass rape trial 'send powerful message'
The guilty verdicts against all 51 men accused of participating in the mass rape of Gisèle Pelicot are "enormously powerful", journalist Megan Clement, editor of the feminist Impact newsletter, told FRANCE 24.
Many of the accused had denied the rape and sexual assault charges against them saying that they thought Gisèle Pelicot had consented to their encounters, despite being drugged unconscious.
The unanimous guilty verdicts "send a powerful message to say none of those excuses hold water for a second", Clement said.
Pelicot children 'disappointed by low sentences', family member says
The children of Gisèle and Dominique Pelicot said on Thursday that they were “disappointed” by the sentences handed down to the 51 defendants in the Mazan rape trial, which ranged from 3 to 20 years' imprisonment.
“The children are disappointed with the low sentences,” said a member of the Pelicot family, who asked to remain anonymous.
The children are not planning to speak to Dominique Pelicot following the verdict. “There is no question of it,” the family member said.
French mass rape trial defendants sentenced to between 3 and 20 years
A French court on Thursday handed down sentences against 51 men found guilty of participating in the mass rape of Gisele Pelicot, with terms ranging from 20 years for her ex-husband to three years for others.
Main perpetrator Dominique Pelicot got the maximum term of 20 years under the charges of aggravated rape. His 50 co-defendants received jail terms of between three and 15 years -- less than what prosecutors had demanded. Two of these defendants had their jail terms suspended.
FRANCE 24's Selina Sykes reports from Avignon.
Crowds gather outside Avignon courtroom to support Gisèle Pelicot
Amid a crowd of supporters a woman holds a sign reading "All the women in the world support you. Thank you Gisèle." Clement Mahoudeau, AFP.
Dominique Pelicot is not ruling out an appeal, lawyer says
The lawyer for Dominique Pelicot, who was sentenced to the maximum term of 20 years jail on Thursday for committing and orchestrating the mass rapes against his ex-wife, did not rule out lodging an appeal of the verdict.
"We're going to use the 10 days which we have to decide whether or not to appeal this decision," Dominique Pelicot's lawyer Beatrice Zavarro told reporters.
Journalists wait for Gisèle Pelicot to exit the courtroom
The hearing has been adjourned
The hearing has been adjourned after a total of 51 defendants have been sentenced.
Many have been sentenced to multiple years in prison – although often a few years less than prosecutors requested. Here are some of the sentences:
Jean-Pierre M. was sentenced to twelve years' imprisonment (the prosecution had asked for 17 years). He was charged with multiple rapes of his own wife, some in the company of Dominique Pelicot, over a period of five years.
Jacques C. was sentenced to five years, without a committal order. He was released. Cyrille D., Lionel R. and Boris M. were sentenced to eight years' imprisonment (the public prosecutors had asked for twelve years).
The defendants have 10 days to appeal.
Gisele Pelicot's ex-husband jailed for 20 years in France mass rape trial
FRANCE 24's Selina Sykes reports from Avignon.
51 defendants convicted by court, no acquittals
All 51 defendants in the trial have been found guilty of charges against them. Two are guilty of sexual assault, two are guilty of attempted rape and 47 of the defendants guilty of aggravated rape.
A panel of judges has begun convicting the a first batch of 20 out of 50 co-defendants, dismissing claims by some of them that they thought they were taking part in a consensual sex game or that Pelicot's consent meant the Frenchman's wife, Gisele Pelicot, also agreed.
The presiding judge told the court that sentencing would be announced after all the verdicts had been delivered.
A cheer went up outside the court in the southern French city of Avignon among the victim's supporters when news of the first guilty verdicts filtered out.
French court sentences ex-husband of Gisèle Pelicot to a maximum 20 years in prison
A court in France on Thursday sentenced the ex-husband of Gisèle Pelicot to a maximum 20 years of imprisonment for drugging and raping her and allowing other men to rape her while she was knocked out, in abuse that lasted nearly a decade.
The sentence against Dominique Pelicot was declared after he was found guilty of all charges against him. At age 72, it could mean that he spends the rest of his life in prison.
At least 20 defendants in Pelicot rape trial have been found guilty of rape, court says
At least 20 men accused of being recruited by Frenchman Dominique Pelicot to rape his then-wife Gisele Pelicot, who he knocked unconscious with drugs, over the course of about a decade, were found guilty of rape by a court in Avignon on Thursday.
Some of the men acknowledged wrongdoing, while others said they believed Gisele Pelicot had consented to sex.
