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Ex-president Nicolas Sarkozy has stated that his stay in prison has been “gruelling” and a “horrific experience” as he appeared via video link at a judicial proceeding regarding his application to complete his jail term at home.

Legal Proceeding from Prison

The former leader, dressed in a navy blue suit, was visible on screen from jail on Monday, seated at a table with his lawyers beside him. He informed the judges: “I want to acknowledge all the prison staff, who are exceptionally humane, and who have made this nightmare bearable – because it is a nightmare.”

Background of the Legal Situation

Sarkozy was admitted to the correctional facility in Paris on 21 October, after receiving a half-decade imprisonment for illegal collaboration over a plan to secure financing for his 2007 presidential election campaign from the regime of the late Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi.

He has challenged the ruling, but the court ruled that because of the “exceptional gravity” of his conviction, he had to be incarcerated while the legal challenge took its course.

Unprecedented Importance

Sarkozy, who served as France’s conservative leader between 2007 and 2012, is the initial ex-leader of an EU country to be imprisoned in prison, and the first French postwar leader to go behind bars.

Emotional Testimony

The former president told the court from prison: “I was completely unaware or intention to ask Mr Gaddafi for any kind of financing … I will not admit to something I didn’t do … I could not have foreseen that at this stage of life, I’d be in prison. It’s an ordeal that has been forced upon me. I confess it’s difficult, it’s very hard. It has an impact on any prisoner because it’s exhausting.”

He stated he would not try to communicate with any defendants or witnesses in the case. He declared: “I’m French, I am patriotic, my family is in France. This situation has caused them pain a lot.”

Defense Lawyers Observations

Sarkozy’s lawyer Jean-Michel Darrois, positioned beside him in the prison video link room, stated: “Being in solitary confinement has been very hard for him.” He commented on Sarkozy: “He’s a strong, robust and courageous man and this imprisonment has been very painful for him.”

In court, a different legal representative, Christophe Ingrain, who had seen him daily, asserted Sarkozy would be safer out of prison than within. “He has faced death threats, has listened to shouts at night and the urgent intervention in a adjacent room when a prisoner self-harmed,” he stated.

Current Status

The public attorney Damien Brunet requested that Sarkozy’s petition for freedom be granted. The court will announce its decision on Monday afternoon.

Prison Conditions

The former president has been held in solitary confinement for his own safety, in an private room of about 97 square feet, with his own washing facility and toilet. Security personnel are occupying a neighbouring cell to ensure his safety.

Accounts indicated that he had been consuming solely yogurt in prison as he was concerned any meal might have been contaminated. He had been offered the facilities to prepare his own meals but declined the offer.

Support from Outside

Sarkozy’s social media account last week shared a recording of piles of letters, postcards and parcels it said had been sent to him, including a collection, a sweet treat and a volume. “No correspondence will go without a response,” his account announced. “The end of the story has not yet been written.”

Items in Prison

Sarkozy brought with him a life story of Christ as well as The Count of Monte Cristo, the famous work in which an innocent man is sentenced to jail but breaks out to seek retribution.

Legal Proceedings Details

During Sarkozy’s three-month trial, the state attorney had told the court that Sarkozy entered into a “corrupt agreement” of corruption with one of the worst rulers of the last three decades.

Sarkozy maintained his innocence and said he had not been involved in a criminal conspiracy to obtain campaign finances from Libya.

He was acquitted of three distinct accusations of dishonesty, misuse of Libyan public funds and illegal election campaign funding. After the state prosecutor also challenged these acquittals, Sarkozy will be judged again on all the charges next year, including criminal conspiracy.

Prior Legal Issues

Although the claims of a secret campaign funding pact with the North African government formed the biggest corruption trial Sarkozy had faced, he had already been found guilty in two separate cases and lost France’s highest distinction, the Légion d’honneur.

The former president had previously become the initial ex-leader forced to wear an electronic tag after being convicted in a different matter of corruption and improper sway. In that case, he was given a 12-month sentence but was able to serve it with an electronic tag worn around the ankle. He wore the tag for three months before being granted conditional release.