French Court Exonerates Moroccan Man Wrongfully Convicted of Sexual Assault

"Nothing remains to the detriment of Mr. Farid El Haïry. The case is over and this decision clears you of all accusations," the president of the Court of Review, Nicolas Bonnal, declared on Thursday. As a direct consequence of this decision, El Haïry’s name will be removed from all police and judicial files and the mention on his criminal record will be permanently erased.

"Personally," added the president, "the dignity of which we have been witnesses leads me to hope that, despite the limited nature of the reparation that we offer you, the future will present itself to you differently from this day on." The court also ordered the posting of this decision in Hazebrouk as well as in the daily newspapers La Voix du Nord, Le Monde, Le Figaro and Libération.

Thus, Farid El Haïry has become the twelfth person to be rehabilitated since 1945 in France. His lawyer, Frank Berton, will now initiate a compensation procedure for the eleven months and twenty-three days of abusive pre-trial detention of his client.