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Ex-president Nicolas Sarkozy has declared that his stay in prison has been “exhausting” and an “ordeal” as he appeared via video link at a court hearing regarding his application to serve his sentence at home.

Legal Proceeding from Prison

The former leader, wearing a dark blue attire, appeared on camera from prison on Monday, positioned at a desk with his legal representatives beside him. He informed the judges: “I want to commend all the prison staff, who are exceptionally humane, and who have made this nightmare bearable – because it is a nightmare.”

Context of the Case

Sarkozy entered the correctional facility in Paris on 21 October, after being handed a five-year jail sentence for criminal conspiracy over a plan to obtain funds for his election bid from the regime 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 go to prison while the appeals process proceeded.

Historical Importance

Sarkozy, who served as France’s conservative leader between 2007 and 2012, is the initial ex-leader of an EU country to serve time in prison, and the initial leader since WWII to go behind bars.

Personal Statement

The former president told the court from prison: “I never had any idea or desire to ask Mr Gaddafi for any kind of financing … I will never confess to something I didn’t do … I could not have foreseen that at 70 years of age, I’d be in prison. It’s an challenge that has been forced upon me. I admit it’s difficult, it’s very hard. It leaves a mark on any prisoner because it’s exhausting.”

He stated he would not attempt to enter into contact with any defendants or witnesses in the case. He declared: “I’m French, I am patriotic, my family is in France. This ordeal has made them suffer a lot.”

Defense Lawyers Observations

Sarkozy’s lawyer Jean-Michel Darrois, positioned beside him in the remote connection facility, stated: “Being in solitary confinement has been very hard for him.” He commented on Sarkozy: “He’s a resilient, robust and brave man and this detention has caused him great suffering.”

In court, a different legal representative, Christophe Ingrain, who had seen him daily, said Sarkozy would be more secure outside jail than within. “He has faced death threats, has heard screaming at night and the emergency response in a neighbouring cell when a prisoner injured themselves,” he said.

Current Status

The state prosecutor Damien Brunet asked that Sarkozy’s request for release be approved. The court will announce its decision on Monday afternoon.

Incarceration Details

Sarkozy has been held in solitary confinement for his own safety, in an private room of about 9 sq metres, with his own shower and restroom. Two bodyguards are stationed nearby to protect him.

Accounts indicated that he had been eating only yoghurt in prison as he feared any meal might have been contaminated. He had been offered the facilities to prepare his own meals but refused this.

Support from the Public

Sarkozy’s social media account last week posted a video of numerous correspondences, cards and parcels it claimed had been sent to him, including a collection, a sweet treat and a volume. “No correspondence will go without a response,” his account declared. “The end of the story has not yet been determined.”

Items in Prison

Sarkozy took into prison a biography of Jesus as well as the classic novel, Alexandre Dumas’s novel in which an innocent man is sentenced to jail but breaks out to seek retribution.

Legal Proceedings Particulars

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

The accused denied wrongdoing and said he had not been part of a criminal conspiracy to obtain campaign finances from Libya.

He was acquitted of three distinct accusations of dishonesty, improper handling of state money and unlawful political financing. After the state prosecutor also appealed against these acquittals, Sarkozy will be judged again on all the charges 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 encountered, he had already been found guilty in two different proceedings and lost France’s top honor, the national recognition.

Sarkozy had previously become the first former French head of state forced to wear an electronic tag after being convicted in a separate case of dishonesty and influence peddling. In that case, he was given a one-year jail term but was able to serve it with an electronic tag attached to his leg. He had the device for a quarter year before being allowed limited freedom.