Moroccan Woman Sues French State Over Denied Access to Ex-Partner’s Trial

The woman asked the Paris judicial court on Wednesday to condemn the State for depriving her of attending this trial. Khadija believes that her "trial was stolen" from her. "When I filed a complaint, I had faith in justice. I wanted to see him in the dock, I wanted to hear the word ’convicted’. But they stole my trial," the young woman said from the witness stand.

According to Ouest-France, the case dates back to 2017, when Khadija filed a complaint against her ex-partner for "rape," "torture" and "acts of barbarity." The investigating judge in charge of the case decided to refer him to the Haute-Vienne assize court. In September 2020, the plaintiff, to her great surprise, learns in the press that the trial is underway. Her efforts to attend the trial were in vain. Her ex-spouse will be sentenced to eight years in prison for the violence and acquitted of the rape charges.

The victim was not informed of the date of the trial because the summons had been sent to the wrong address, the prosecution defends. But "no one tried to contact her by other means, even though the police had her phone number," observed Me Pauline Rongier, Khadija’s lawyer at the hearing. "How can you convict someone for marital rape when you don’t have a victim?" the lawyer asked.

"What is being criticized here is simply the acquittal of Mr. B. and the fact that the prosecution did not appeal," explained the representative of the State, assuring that "the victim’s rights were not violated. She is not a victim of the State, but of Mr. B." "The State cannot be considered at fault" in this case, the public prosecutor argued. The judicial court will deliver its verdict on May 21. As for the defendant, in an irregular situation, he was deported to Morocco upon his release from prison in February 2024.