The case "
Julie
", pseudonym of a young woman whose family accuses firefighters of having raped her when she was a minor, knows a new stage on Tuesday before the Court of Appeal of Versailles, seven months after a decision of the Court of Cassation. While she was 13 to 15 years old, "
Julie
" (assumed name) was undergoing a medically heavy treatment which required numerous interventions by firefighters at her home, in the Paris region. Following a complaint in 2010, three firefighters were indicted for "
rape
", before a judge reclassified the facts as "
sexual abuse, without violence, coercion, threat or surprise on a minor. fifteen years by several people
”.
To read also Julie case: the firefighters will not be judged for "rapes"
It is this requalification that the young woman contested with her mother and her lawyers until the Court of Cassation, which rejected them in March on this main request. But the highest court of the judicial order - which examines compliance with the rules of law and not the substance of the cases - however broke two elements, which are studied Tuesday by the investigating chamber of the court of appeal of Versailles. The magistrates will study whether, on the one hand, the period of the
alleged "
sexual abuse
" of the main defendant is longer, and whether, on the other hand, other firefighters than the three already referred to the criminal court could be concerned by prosecution for "
corruption of a minor
".
"
Rape
" and "
corruption of a minor
"
For a defense lawyer, the fragility of the young girl should not obscure her consent at the time of the facts, in particular with the main defendant, that "
the parents received
" at home as the "
guy
" of their daughter.
The decision of the Versailles Court of Appeal is expected in several weeks.
At the same time, the mother of "
Julie
" and her lawyers Lorraine Questiaux and Marjolaine Vignola announced that on October 14 they had filed a complaint with the constitution of civil party for "
rape
" and "
corruption of a minor
" against 17 firefighters who were not indicted.
To read also "I recognize the facts which are reproached to me": a firefighter of Paris judged for the rape of a policewoman in Yvelines
They also indicate that they have appealed to the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR), an appeal currently awaiting a first screening by the Strasbourg institution according to them.
“
We consider that the crime of sexual assault is contrary to the European Convention on Human Rights,
” explains Lorraine Questiaux.
Me Marjolaine Vignola adds as a grievance the duration of the procedure - more than 10 years of investigation - and the "
violence of the procedure
" for "
Julie
", who is now 26 years old.
