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The former French president has asserted that his time behind bars has been “draining” and a “horrific experience” as he was present via video link at a court hearing regarding his petition to serve his sentence at home.

Legal Proceeding from Prison

Sarkozy, dressed in a dark blue attire, was visible on screen from jail on Monday, positioned at a desk with his lawyers beside him. He informed the judges: “I want to commend all the correctional officers, who are exceptionally humane, and who have eased this difficult situation – because it is a nightmare.”

Context of the Legal Situation

Sarkozy entered the correctional facility in Paris on 21 October, after being handed a half-decade imprisonment for illegal collaboration over a plan to obtain funds for his election bid from the government of the late Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi.

He has challenged the verdict, but the court ruled that because of the “exceptional gravity” of his conviction, he had to be incarcerated while the legal challenge took its course.

Historical Importance

Sarkozy, who was France’s conservative leader between 2007 and 2012, is the first former head of an EU country to be imprisoned in prison, and the first French postwar leader to go behind bars.

Personal Statement

The former president stated to the judges from prison: “I never had any idea or desire to ask Mr Gaddafi for any kind of financing … I will not admit to something I am innocent of … I never imagined that at this stage of life, I’d be in prison. It’s an challenge that has been forced upon me. I confess it’s difficult, it’s extremely challenging. It leaves a mark on any prisoner because it’s gruelling.”

He stated he would not attempt to enter into contact with any defendants or witnesses 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

Sarkozy’s lawyer Jean-Michel Darrois, positioned beside him in the prison video link room, stated: “Being in solitary confinement has been very hard for him.” He said of Sarkozy: “He’s a resilient, durable and courageous man and this detention has caused him great suffering.”

In court, another of Sarkozy’s lawyers, Christophe Ingrain, who had visited him every day, asserted Sarkozy would be more secure out of prison than inside. “He has received threats against his life, has listened to shouts at night and the urgent intervention in a adjacent room when a prisoner self-harmed,” he stated.

Current Status

The public attorney Damien Brunet requested that Sarkozy’s petition for freedom be granted. The court will reveal its ruling on Monday afternoon.

Prison Conditions

Sarkozy has been held in solitary confinement for his own safety, in an individual cell of about 97 square feet, with his own shower and toilet. Two bodyguards are stationed nearby to ensure his safety.

Accounts suggested that he had been consuming solely yogurt in prison as he feared any meal might have been tampered with. He had been given the opportunity to cook for himself but declined the offer.

Encouragement from the Public

His online presence last week posted a video of piles of letters, postcards and packages it said had been sent to him, including a collage, a sweet treat and a book. “No letter will go unanswered,” his account announced. “The final chapter has not yet been determined.”

Items in Prison

Sarkozy took into prison a life story of Christ as well as the classic novel, the famous work in which an wrongly accused individual is sentenced to jail but breaks out to seek retribution.

Legal Proceedings Details

During Sarkozy’s three-month trial, the public prosecutor had informed the judges that Sarkozy engaged in a “Faustian pact of corruption with one of the most unspeakable dictators 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 separate charges of dishonesty, misuse of Libyan public funds and illegal election campaign funding. After the public attorney also challenged these acquittals, Sarkozy will be re-tried on all the charges next year, including criminal conspiracy.

Previous Convictions

Although the claims of a clandestine financial agreement with the North African government formed the biggest corruption trial Sarkozy had faced, he had already been convicted in two separate cases and lost France’s highest distinction, the national recognition.

Sarkozy had previously become the initial ex-leader forced to wear an electronic tag after being convicted in a different matter of corruption and improper sway. In that situation, he was given a 12-month sentence but was able to complete it with an electronic tag attached to his leg. He wore the tag for three months before being granted conditional release.