The Yvelines Court of Appeal rejected the family's request to reclassify the sexual assault as rape. The family demanded justice for the young girl, underage and under heavy drug treatment at the material time.
Julie (assumed name) is in college when she is rescued by Paris firefighters after becoming unwell. One of the firefighters of the brigade keeps her phone number after the intervention, recontacts her and the two young people start dating. But "One day, when my mother was away, he put me on the bed, sat astride me and raped me. From there my life turned into hell.", tells the young girl in Le Parisien. From that moment on, her parents noticed, without understanding the reason, that the teenager had violent anxiety attacks and developed a social phobia. She began in August 2008 a violent depression in the face of which the doctors prescribed many drugs to her: "Doctors were giving her very large doses of neuroleptics, a dozen different antidepressants and anti-anxiety drugs." says his mother. The firefighters are still dating the girl, committing gang rapes on the teenager. "We are talking about a totally vulnerable girl who was not in a position at her age and in her condition to give her informed consent.", denounces Me Joseph Cohen-Sabban, who defends the interests of Julie and her family. An investigation is open for 9 years.
In July 2019, the facts were not qualified as rape but as sexual assault, an offense punishable by a maximum of ten years in prison, half less than the sentence incurred at the assizes. On September 24, a hearing was held at the hearing. -closed to determine which qualification should be applied. "The question that was raised in court was whether the firefighters were able to see that she was not consenting at the time of the facts, despite certain appearances. The firefighters (her) know because in two years, they will intervene nearly 130 times (…) and they all know her story. And so we are here facing the most absolute horror with firefighters who know perfectly well that she is between 13 and 15 years old, that she is in deep psychiatric and psychic distress ", said Mr. Jean Tamalet, the victim’s lawyer.
On November 12, 2020, the Yvelines Court of Appeal upheld the qualification of sexual assault. This is not the same judicial treatment, turning the crime into a misdemeanor, and assumes that the girl was consenting at the time of the facts. The reason ? The victim could not prove that she did not consent.
Establish a clear framework on consent?
The family lawyer Master Tamalet has spoken following this decision, denouncing a "minimalist" conception of rape: "We are lagging far behind in listening to victims in this matter and in understanding what constitutes consent to a sexual act": We are talking about a minor under heavy drug treatment and rapes committed by rescue and health professionals, he recalls.
The association "Les Effronté-e-s", which supports Julie Corinne Leriche's mother, said in a press release:"We need a minimum age below which a child cannot be considered as consenting! President Macron was not only committed to this (see Huffpost article), but it is also a provision of the Istanbul Convention which France ratified in 2014, and which it still does not respect! "
This is also the position of legal professionals. On Twitter, the lawyer at the Paris Bar Solenne Brugere declares : "For better justice, we must strengthen the legislative system, improve the texts, review the definition of rape, increase the penalties, systematically criminalize sexual abuse of children, adolescents, people vulnerable by disease or disability."
The family plans to appeal to the Supreme Court to continue their fight, supported by figures such as Muriel Salmona, a specialist in traumatic memory after sexual violence. After 10 years of legal battle, Corinne Leriche declares on her Facebook page that she is sickened by the justice of her country and decided to continue to fight against this denial of justice. Julie is 80% disabled after clearing the window from the 3rd floor in September 2020.