Jacqui W., 58, is tried Thursday and Friday before the Strasbourg Assize Court for the murder of his wife Sylvia A., a 40-year-old Alsatian with whom he was in the process of divorce, reports France Bleu.
In November 2019, he killed her with several stab wounds.
He faces life imprisonment.
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This is the 131st “
feminicide
” of the year 2019, according to the “
Feminicides by companions or ex
” collective.
Contacted by
Le Figaro
, Me Maxime Bordron, lawyer for civil parties, underlines that there had been "
several worrying warning signs testifying to domestic violence.
"
It all starts late on a Sunday evening in November.
While Jacqui W. is very alcoholic, Sylvia A. discovers a knife under a cushion.
She then tries to flee their home in Oberhoffen-sur-Moder.
But her husband holds her back.
She phones her daughter, Stella, who hears her scream.
Stella quickly goes there but arrives too late.
The emergency services note the death of his mother who received multiple stab wounds.
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The husband then tries to commit suicide but he is overpowered by the gendarmes.
Indicted for "
murder of a spouse
", he was placed in pre-trial detention.
During the investigation, Jacqui W. denies the premeditation of his crime.
Psychological expertise reports a “
violent and egocentric
” personality.
He is also prone to alcohol problems which led to the loss of his job.
"The last months before his death, the episodes of violence had intensified
", underlines Me Maxime Bordon.
The quarantine had also filed "
several handrails before filing a complaint
," adds the lawyer.
Jacqui W. was summoned to court in December 2019 after a complaint filed two months earlier by his wife for death threats.
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A week after the tragedy, nearly 300 people gathered in the town for a white march.
The victim's daughter denounced the delay in the intervention of the gendarmes.
An audit was then carried out by the general inspectorate.
"
No failure was noted,"
explains the lawyer for the civil parties.
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However, the then Minister of Justice, Nicole Belloubet, admitted that the victim protection system "
was not working
".
The Minister of the Interior, Christophe Castaner had also expressed himself: “
Because nobody can accept a feminicide, nobody can accept an assassination.
We owe him all the transparency, to which I agree.
"
The verdict is expected Friday the 14th in the evening.
“The daughter of the victim awaits explanations from the accused and a conviction that lives up to her mother's memory.
We also hope that this trial will allow us to go further in the fight against violence against women, ”
Maxime Bordro
told
Figaro .
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75% of the measures have already been taken
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