Former French President Nicolas Sarkozy was sentenced to three years in prison on Monday for corruption and influence, making him the first former Elysee tenant to be sentenced to prison.
The Paris Criminal Court has specified that two of those years in prison are exempt from compliance and that the third year of firm prison can be commuted to house arrest or surveillance with an electronic bracelet.
The court also sentenced the former president’s lawyer, Thierry Herzog, to a similar sentence, which was also banned from practicing the law for five years, and senior magistrate Gilbert Azibert.
The sentences are slightly less than what the prosecution had claimed, which demanded two solid years of imprisonment against the three defendants.
The judges believed that a corruption pact in favor of Sarkozy’s judicial interests had been proven in other cases opened after his departure from the Elysee in 2012.
These actions came to light in telephone conversations between Sarkozy and his attorney in 2014 between Sarkozy and his attorney, which revealed that they had contacted Azibert, then a member of the Supreme Court, to obtain information in another open case against the former president . change of helping the magistrate get a post in Monaco.
The penalty includes the “particular seriousness” of the crime committed by Sarkozy because of his condition as a former president, who “used his position and his relationships” for “his personal interest,” which discredits a position that you have under the constitution. assigns the balanced power of justice.
In addition, the verdict includes that Sarkozy needed to know the offenses committed due to his status as a lawyer through training.
He was also very harsh on Herzog, one of the most renowned lawyers in Paris, and on Azibert, whom he accused of “discrediting a profession whose function is fundamental in democracy.”
The historic conviction of Sarkozy, who can appeal the sentence, comes two weeks before opening another trial involving the former president, namely the alleged irregularities over the funding of his campaign for the 2012 presidential election.