The shockwaves felt across France from the trial stemmed both from the scale of the case and the disturbingly ordinary profiles of the accused. | Clement Mahoudeau/AFP via Getty Images
The lawyers for some of them have argued these men thought they were participating in a sexual fetish shared by the couple, despite Pélicot being unconscious during the encounters. These attorneys have built a legal defense around the fact that the the need to seek each party’s consent is not explicitly mentioned in the legal definition of rape.
French law currently defines rape as “any act of sexual penetration of any kind whatsoever, or any oral-genital act committed … by violence, coercion, threat, or surprise.”
“Without the intention to commit it, there is no rape,” lawyer Guillaume de Palma, who is defending six of the accused, argued in court. “In France, proof of intent is required.”
Given the amount of evidence, Vogel, a member of the French Greens, does not believe that this defense will land. However, she noted that the very attempt to use it highlights the need to reform the definition of rape to include consent.
“The media coverage of the trial and the defense used by the lawyers have highlighted that this is a flaw, and today society no longer tolerates this flaw,” she added.
Former Justice Minister Éric Dupond-Moretti expressed doubts about the need for a change in French legislation because of the “risk of sexual relations becoming contractualized,” he said during a Senate hearing in February.