Frenchwoman Gisèle Pelicot, whose ex-husband recruited dozens of strangers online to sexually assault and rape her while drugged, arrived in court on Monday for an appeal trial triggered by the bid of one man who said he "never intended" to rape her. Fifty-one men, including her former husband Dominique Pelicot, were convicted after an initial months-long trial that ended in December last year and turned Gisèle Pelicot into a global icon.
This time last year, Beatrice Zavarro, a then unknown lawyer from Marseille, drew herself up to her full 1.45-metre (4ft 8in) height, and addressed the figure in the dock: It's you and me against the world. That man was Dominique Pelicot. Over the next three months and 17 days, the court would learn that for almost a decade he had drugged his wife, Gisele, and invited more than 50 men into their bedroom to rape her while she was unconscious.
Islam's* life was changed forever by an air strike in November 2023. The young woman from el-Geneina, Sudan, had been preparing for her exams when a strike landed directly on her family's home. Now, sitting in one of the countless straw structures in a sprawling refugee camp in Adre just over the border in eastern Chad, Islam, 22, sobs as she recalls what happened to her.
Amini's attack on this vulnerable girl was predatory and calculated. He has demonstrated himself to be a dangerous sexual offender and this sentence prevents him from harming anyone else.
Oliver Berry's conviction was upheld after he attempted to overturn it, having previously committed severe sexual abuse against his daughters, highlighting serious systemic failures.
"It's not really important whether it was controversial or not; if we're showing all parts of history, then you've gotta show that part. Rape and abuse of power lives in our world and also lives in the galaxy far, far away."
Brown will serve 20 years in a state prison, followed by 25 years of post-release supervision, Bragg said. Brown will also be required to complete the New York State Sex Offender Registration.