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The former French president has stated that his period of incarceration has been “exhausting” and a “nightmare” as he was present via video link at a judicial proceeding regarding his application to complete his jail term at home.

Court Appearance from Prison

The former leader, wearing a dark blue attire, appeared on camera from jail on Monday, seated at a table with his legal representatives beside him. He informed the judges: “I want to commend all the correctional officers, who are exceptionally humane, and who have made this nightmare bearable – because it is a nightmare.”

Context of the Case

The former president was admitted to La Santé prison in Paris on 21 October, after being handed a half-decade imprisonment for criminal conspiracy over a scheme to obtain funds for his 2007 presidential election campaign from the regime of the late Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi.

He has appealed against the ruling, but the court ruled that because of the “serious nature” of his conviction, he had to be incarcerated while the legal challenge took its course.

Unprecedented Importance

The former leader, who was France’s rightwing president between 2007 and 2012, is the initial ex-leader of an EU country to serve time in prison, and the initial leader since WWII to be incarcerated.

Emotional Testimony

The former president stated to the judges from prison: “I never had any idea or desire to ask Mr Gaddafi for any kind of financing … I will not admit to something I didn’t do … I never imagined that at this stage of life, I’d be in prison. It’s an ordeal that has been imposed on me. I confess it’s difficult, it’s very hard. It leaves a mark on any prisoner because it’s exhausting.”

He stated he would not attempt to enter into contact with any accused individuals or testifiers in the case. He declared: “I’m French, I am patriotic, my family is in France. This situation has caused them pain a lot.”

Defense Lawyers Comments

Sarkozy’s lawyer Jean-Michel Darrois, sitting next to him in the prison video link room, said: “Being in solitary confinement has been very hard for him.” He said of Sarkozy: “He’s a resilient, durable and courageous man and this detention has caused him great suffering.”

In court, a different legal representative, Christophe Ingrain, who had seen him daily, said Sarkozy would be safer outside jail than within. “He has faced death threats, has listened to shouts at night and the emergency response in a neighbouring cell when a prisoner injured themselves,” he said.

Present Situation

The state prosecutor Damien Brunet asked that Sarkozy’s request for release be granted. The court will announce its decision on Monday afternoon.

Prison Conditions

The former president has been placed in isolation for his own security, in an private room of about 9 sq metres, with his own shower and toilet. Security personnel are stationed nearby to protect him.

Accounts suggested that he had been eating only yoghurt in prison as he feared any meal might have been contaminated. He had been given the opportunity to cook for himself but refused this.

Encouragement from the Public

His online presence last week shared a recording of piles of letters, cards and parcels it claimed had been sent to him, including a collage, a chocolate bar and a volume. “No correspondence will go unanswered,” his account declared. “The end of the story has not yet been determined.”

Items in Prison

The former leader brought with him a biography of Jesus as well as the classic novel, the famous work in which an innocent man is sentenced to jail but breaks out to seek retribution.

Court Case Details

During the lengthy court case, the state attorney had told the court that Sarkozy entered into a “Faustian pact of corruption with one of the worst rulers of the last 30 years.

The accused denied wrongdoing and stated he had not been part of a illegal scheme to seek election funding from Libya.

He was acquitted of three distinct accusations of corruption, misuse of Libyan public funds and illegal election campaign funding. After the public attorney also challenged these acquittals, Sarkozy will be re-tried on all the charges next year, including illegal collaboration.

Previous Convictions

Although the claims of a secret campaign funding pact with the North African government formed the most significant legal case Sarkozy had encountered, he had already been found guilty in two separate cases and stripped of France’s highest distinction, the national recognition.

The former president had previously become the first former French head of state forced to wear an monitoring device after being convicted in a different matter of dishonesty and improper sway. In that situation, he was given a 12-month sentence but was able to serve it with an electronic tag attached to his leg. He had the device for a quarter year before being allowed limited freedom.