Dominique Pelicot confronts his demons: revelations at the trial for raping his ex-wife

In a trial that has sparked outrage, Dominique Pelicot testified today, October 3, 2024, before the Vaucluse criminal court, where he is on trial for drugging and raping his ex-wife, Gisèle Pelicot, as well as orchestrating sexual abuse involving numerous men over a ten-year period. “In every man, there’s a demon. Mine comes from my childhood,” said the main accused, attempting to justify his actions.

Pelicot expressed his inability to explain the reasons for his betrayal, saying, “I don’t know how to explain the real reason for my actions. The only thing I know is that I betrayed her trust.” He acknowledged the devastating consequences of his actions on his family, questioning, “Why? Why? Why?”

In response to the court president’s questions about his motives, Pelicot denied that he had considered his wife a “commodity.” He stressed his pride in having her by his side, describing her as “a very, very good person.” However, he admitted that he had acted out of selfishness, pointing out, “I thought of myself, not her.”

During his testimony, Pelicot spoke of a troubled past, including a rape he says he was a victim of at the age of 9. “That’s why I’m working on it and will continue to work on it,” he added, testifying to his quest for understanding. Expressing his regret at still being alive, he said, “I should have disappeared through illness in 2002,” following surgery.

This trial highlights not only a personal tragedy, but also the societal issues surrounding violence against women. The debates continue, as the hearing raises profound questions about human nature and the wounds of the past.

We’re in the middle of a nightmare!

Jérôme V.: confession of an accused in search of explanations

On Wednesday, before the Vaucluse criminal court, 46-year-old Jérôme V. declared: “I didn’t go back because the rape mode suited me, but because I couldn’t control my sexuality.” Standing behind the microphone in the dock, this man seems to have reflected on himself during his three and a half years in prison. Arrested in March 2021, he is accused of raping Gisèle Pelicot on six occasions, between March and June 2020, during confinement. Investigators noted multiple vaginal and anal penetrations on the unconscious victim, as well as forced fellatio, “with the active participation of Dominique Pelicot”.

During his interrogation, Jérôme V. acknowledged the charges against him in police custody, aware of the transgressive nature of his actions. However, as the expert psychologist who met him noted, “the most important thing for him was his own needs”. The forty-something, athletically built and a keen runner, explained that he felt an irrepressible need to cheat on his partners. “I couldn’t do everything sexually with them,” he explained during his psychiatric examination. He multiplied his conquests via dating sites, libertine clubs and the naturist beaches of Cap d’Agde, claiming that his addiction had made him less and less demanding.

A regular consumer of pornography, Jérôme V. admitted to having explored a variety of content, specifying a preference for “sodomy, large breasts and voyeurism”. He also acknowledged an interest in “somnophilia”, although he claimed to have consulted this type of content only sporadically. An assessor noted that a list of 89 female first names had been found at his home. Asked about this, he agreed, saying, “I needed to count the conquests, it wasn’t all infidelities.”

His former companions have not been kind to him, describing him as “very game- and entertainment-oriented”, and as an “egocentric, insecure” man. His ex-wife, with whom he had two children, said he was “rigid and demanding” and “obsessed with weight and food”. Jérôme V. admitted that their intimate life suffered from monotony, admitting: “I reproached him for being a starfish.”

In prison, Jérôme V. tried to explain his behavior by a need to be valued as a lover, linked to a “great lack of confidence” in himself. He recalled a difficult childhood, describing a scathing mother and years of suffering at school. “I was the whipping boy of my middle school,” he recounted, claiming that his parents were unable to hear his pain.

On a professional level, he judged himself severely, having had one failure after another, going from college supervisor to various odd jobs. At the time of the events, he was employed at a greengrocer’s and had also worked as a volunteer firefighter from 2008 to 2016.

The expert psychiatrist observed a “major narcissistic flaw” in him, underlining his inability to function alone and his need for constant assistance. In court, Jérôme V. explained that he had come to Dominique Pelicot’s home during the confinement period because he was single. Although he continued to acknowledge the facts, he also claimed to have been influenced by pornographic photos sent by Pelicot, while denying that he wanted to “hide behind victimization”.

The expert did not perceive any guilt in him, noting instead a tendency to blame his co-defendant and a lack of empathy for the victim. Jérôme V. himself admitted to having “more difficulty than the average person in imagining the suffering of others.”

Attempting to show his consideration for the victim, he declared that he had been “very touched” by the testimony of this “little bit of woman” and acknowledged that he had hurt a person “who seemed to be pure”. He will have to explain his actions in greater detail when he is questioned on the merits of the case, scheduled for Thursday.