Sara case: the accused who raped an 11-year-old child was sentenced to 8 years in prison

The criminal court of Val-d’Oise ruled that it was indeed rape. Young Sarah (names changed) disagreed and that the sex had indeed been imposed on him “with restraint and surprise” when he was 11 years old, five professional judges heard this Thursday at the end of three days behind closed doors in Pontoise. For them, the accused could not ignore the age of his victim.

At that time, Antoine, who was 28 years old and the father of a 9-year-old child, was sentenced to 8 years in prison. It is also prohibited to engage in any activities related to minors for a period of ten years after release from prison. The court issued an arrest warrant against him.

In his reasons, he noted that Sarah was only 11 years old and “lacked the maturity and understanding to engage in and oppose sexual acts.” Although he looks older than his age, “it was enough to talk to him to see that he is not mature enough for his age,” the president said, stressing “the great asymmetry and escalation of the situation.”

“Sexual acts are a major physical and psychological intervention”

For the court, the young girl, who was noted to be in a state of shock after the fact, “constituted a great deal of physical and psychological intrusion.” He said to the accused, “You took advantage of the young girl’s weakness to immediately satisfy your sexual desire.”

“Eight years is very difficult for him to hear,” reacted Antoine’s lawyer Me Dylan Slam. “However, this is not a final decision until there is an appeal from the prosecution or the defense. Maybe they didn’t listen to us in this hearing, which was just a phase. We think. The lawyer recalled that the person he defended argued during the trial because he knew the age of the complainant. “Many elements allow us to understand that he cannot know his real age,” he assures us, while lamenting the backlash the court has faced. “The court decision must be protected from the harmful influence of public opinion. Maybe it was. »

Carine Durrieu-Diebolt, the lawyer for I, Sarah and her family, for her part, emphasized the scale of this case. “He changed the legislation. During the trial, we had a discussion about moral restraint. Now this will no longer be the case. This is clear progress. You should know that we are one of the last countries in Europe to set the consent threshold. “The initial characterization of the facts that the young client was subjected to as sexual violence was experienced as ‘judicial violence’ for Sarah, she continues. “It was a surprise to me when I received the file. It was hasty. But later in the courts and in this process, the victim was heard. It was a recognition for him and at the same time a restoration of justice.”

New law in April 2021

This Friday afternoon, the criminal court concluded the procedure, which caused the outrage of associations protecting children and feminist movements, by announcing the guilt of the family’s father.

After the complaint of the young girl and her family, taking into account the facts, the Pontua prosecutor’s office decided that the rape was not typical, and that the young girl had consented. It was under the jurisdiction of the crime of sexual violence against a minor that Antoine was sent back to the criminal court. But he declared himself incompetent, and after a trial, Antoine was sent back to the criminal court.

The facts happened on April 24, 2017. The accused approached the schoolgirl in a park near her home in Montmany. He had already met her twice and invited her to follow him to his apartment that day. At her request, he gave her oral sex in the stairwell of the building. They will then have non-violent sex in her apartment.