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The former French president has asserted that his time behind bars has been “exhausting” and a “horrific experience” as he was present via remote connection at a judicial proceeding regarding his request to complete his jail term at home.

Court Appearance from Prison

The former leader, wearing a dark blue attire, was visible on screen from jail on Monday, seated at a table with his legal representatives beside him. He told the court: “I want to acknowledge all the prison staff, who are remarkably compassionate, and who have eased this difficult situation – because it is a horrific experience.”

Background of the Case

Sarkozy entered La Santé prison in Paris on 21 October, after being handed a half-decade imprisonment for criminal conspiracy over a plan to obtain funds for his 2007 presidential election campaign from the government of the late Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi.

He has challenged the verdict, but the court ruled that because of the “serious nature” of his guilty verdict, he had to be incarcerated while the appeals process took its course.

Historical Importance

The former leader, who served as France’s rightwing president between 2007 and 2012, is the first former head of an EU country to serve time in prison, and the first French postwar leader to go behind bars.

Personal Statement

Sarkozy told the court from prison: “I was completely unaware or desire to ask Mr Gaddafi for any kind of financing … I will never confess to something I didn’t do … I never imagined that at 70 years of age, I’d be in prison. It’s an ordeal that has been imposed on me. I confess it’s difficult, it’s extremely challenging. It has an impact on any prisoner because it’s exhausting.”

He said he would not try to communicate with any accused individuals or testifiers in the case. He declared: “I’m French, I love my country, my family is in France. This ordeal has caused them pain a lot.”

Defense Lawyers Observations

His legal representative Jean-Michel Darrois, positioned beside him in the prison video link room, said: “Being in solitary confinement has been very hard for him.” He commented on Sarkozy: “He’s a strong, robust and brave man and this imprisonment has caused him great suffering.”

In court, a different legal representative, Christophe Ingrain, who had seen him daily, asserted Sarkozy would be safer out of prison than inside. “He has received threats against his life, has listened to shouts at night and the emergency response in a neighbouring cell when a prisoner self-harmed,” he said.

Present Situation

The state prosecutor Damien Brunet requested that Sarkozy’s request for release be approved. The court will reveal its ruling on Monday afternoon.

Incarceration Details

Sarkozy has been held in solitary confinement for his own safety, in an individual cell of about 9 sq metres, with his own washing facility and restroom. Security personnel are occupying a neighbouring cell to ensure his safety.

Accounts indicated that he had been consuming solely yogurt in prison as he feared any food might have been tampered with. He had been offered the facilities to prepare his own meals but declined the offer.

Support from Outside

His online presence last week shared a video of piles of letters, cards and parcels it claimed had been delivered to his attention, including a collection, a sweet treat and a volume. “No correspondence will go without a response,” his account declared. “The final chapter has not yet been written.”

Items in Prison

Sarkozy took into prison a biography of Jesus as well as The Count of Monte Cristo, the famous work in which an innocent man is imprisoned but breaks out to take revenge.

Court Case Details

During Sarkozy’s three-month trial, the public prosecutor had informed the judges that Sarkozy entered into a “Faustian pact of corruption with one of the worst rulers of the last 30 years.

Sarkozy maintained his innocence and stated he had not been involved in a illegal scheme to obtain campaign finances from Libya.

He was acquitted of three distinct accusations of dishonesty, improper handling of state money and illegal election campaign funding. After the state prosecutor also challenged these not guilty verdicts, Sarkozy will be re-tried on all the accusations next year, including criminal conspiracy.

Prior Legal Issues

Although the allegations of a clandestine financial agreement with the North African government formed the most significant legal case Sarkozy had faced, he had already been convicted in two different proceedings and stripped of France’s top honor, the national recognition.

The former president had previously become the first former French head of state forced to wear an electronic tag after being convicted in a separate case of corruption and improper sway. In that case, he was given a one-year jail term but was able to complete it with an ankle monitor worn around the ankle. He wore the tag for three months before being allowed limited freedom.