Dominic Perrico will not appeal his conviction for drugging and raping his wife and inviting a stranger to rape him, his lawyer said.
Beatriz Zabarro said the 72-year-old former electrician, who was sentenced to up to 20 years in prison this month, wants to avoid putting his now ex-wife, Gisele Perrico, through a new trial, but has not been able to do so in public. He acknowledged that there was a risk of a new trial being held. A longer prison sentence could be handed down depending on the jury's decision.
Pericot and 50 others convicted of rape or sexual assault after a three-and-a-half month trial have until midnight Monday to file an appeal. At least 17 people are believed to have decided to contest their convictions, and more are likely to follow.
Gisele Perico, 72, a former logistics manager, believes she may have been raped more than 200 times by her husband or other men between 2011 and 2020. Dominic Perico was eventually arrested after photographing a female shopper's upskirt at a local supermarket. The couple's home in the Provence town of Mazan. Detectives later discovered tens of thousands of videos of abuse on his cell phone and hard drive.
Zaballo said Monday that Dominic Perico has decided not to appeal his conviction, saying that doing so “will force Gisele into new challenges and new conflicts. [he] I refuse. ”
She added that it would be “taking an unnecessary risk” for Perricot to appeal the conviction when he admitted the charges. Charges can be more serious in an appellate court, where the case will be heard in front of a public jury, and the prison term can be longer.
“It's time to end this judicially,” Zaballo said Monday.
The marathon rape trial in Avignon was heard by a committee of five expert judges. The Court of Appeal in the southern city of Nîmes has called for a full new trial within the next year.
Gisele Perico is not required to attend the appeal hearing, but her lawyer Stéphane Babonneau indicated she would be willing to attend. “She told us she was going to be there. It might not be every day, but she said she would be there,” he said.
She became an international feminist figurehead after insisting that the trial be held in open court and that videos of her abuse be shown so that “shame changes sides.”
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The trial has caused much heartbreak in France, with calls for the country's rape laws to be strengthened, including introducing the non-existent concept of “consent”. The trial also put a spotlight on attitudes towards the rape and sexual abuse of women in France, where 94% of reported rape cases are dropped without any action.
“From Gisele Pericot's point of view, there is no judgment that will restore what she lost,” Babonneau said.
“All Gisele Perico wanted was for the defendant to be found guilty of what he did to her. As for her personal sentence, she respects the court's decision and I don't feel any comfort.”
