A judge rules that the public can view video evidence in a French mass-rape case

Warning: This story contains disturbing details from the beginning.

A French judge has overturned the verdict in the case of a man accused of feeding his wife to sleep and recruiting a number of men to abuse her for more than a decade.

Lawyers for Gisèle Pelicot, 72, had previously filed a motion to challenge the original judge’s decision to only show video of the charges to lawyers and jurors.

He waived his right to anonymity in the case, allowing shocking details of the case to be made public.

His lawyers say the video should be seen to investigate the use of drugs and sexual abuse. They hailed the latest decision as a “victory”.

Dominique Pelicot, 71, recorded many crimes against his ex-wife on video and has confessed to the charges against him.

However, 50 other men are accused of raping her and the videos are considered important in the case.

The judge announced on Friday that before the images were shown there would be an announcement in court “allowing sensitive and minor people to leave”.

He added that the censored video evidence would not be “systematic” and would only be shown when “it is absolutely necessary to reveal the truth” at the request of one of the parties.

A judge last month banned the broadcasting of similar images to the public and repressed them on the grounds that these images were “shocking and dirty”.

However, he decided to remove the restrictions following calls from Ms. Pelicot’s lawyers for the case to be open to the public.

“If these similar scenes, through their publicity, help prevent other women from going through this, then you will find meaning in her suffering,” said one of Ms. Pelicot’s lawyers, Stéphane Babonneau.

Mr Babonneau called the decision “a victory in a war that should not have been fought”, adding that rape victims had for decades under French law had the right to decide whether trials should be public.

The French media are also campaigning for this decision to be reversed. The Judicial Press Association (APJ) has warned of a “severe attack” on freedom of information.

The showing of the video evidence was strongly opposed by lawyers for some of the 50 defendants accused of raping Mr Pelicot’s ex-wife.

“Justice doesn’t need that to proceed, what does this revolting experiment mean?” said lawyer Olivier Lantelme.

The French public is shocked by the number of men involved in this case.

Police were able to identify only 50 of the 83 suspects who appeared in Dominique Pelicot’s videos.

Their ages range from 26 to 68 and they come from all walks of life – firefighters, pharmacists, workers and journalists. Many are fathers and husbands.

Of the other accused men, 15 admitted to rape, but the rest only admitted to participating in sexual acts.