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The former French president has asserted that his stay in prison has been “gruelling” and a “nightmare” as he was present via video link at a court hearing regarding his application to serve his sentence at home.

Legal Proceeding from Prison

Sarkozy, dressed in a navy blue suit, appeared on camera from jail on Monday, seated at a table with his legal representatives beside him. He told the court: “I want to pay tribute to all the prison staff, who are remarkably compassionate, and who have made this nightmare bearable – because it is a horrific experience.”

Background of the Legal Situation

The former president was admitted to the correctional facility in Paris on 21 October, after being handed a five-year jail sentence for illegal collaboration 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 verdict, but the court ruled that because of the “exceptional gravity” of his guilty verdict, he had to go to prison while the legal challenge proceeded.

Unprecedented Significance

Sarkozy, who served as France’s conservative leader between 2007 and 2012, is the first former head of an EU country to be imprisoned in prison, and the first French postwar leader to go behind bars.

Emotional Testimony

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

He said he would not try to communicate with any accused individuals or witnesses in the case. He declared: “I’m French, I am patriotic, my family is in France. This situation has made them suffer a lot.”

Legal Team Observations

Sarkozy’s lawyer Jean-Michel Darrois, positioned beside 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 strong, robust and courageous man and this detention has been very painful for him.”

In court, another of Sarkozy’s lawyers, Christophe Ingrain, who had seen him daily, asserted Sarkozy would be more secure outside jail than within. “He has faced death threats, has listened to shouts at night and the urgent intervention in a adjacent room when a prisoner self-harmed,” he said.

Current Status

The public attorney Damien Brunet requested that Sarkozy’s petition for freedom be approved. The court will announce its decision on Monday afternoon.

Prison Conditions

Sarkozy has been held in solitary confinement for his own safety, in an individual cell of about 97 square feet, with his own shower and toilet. Two bodyguards are occupying a neighbouring cell to ensure his safety.

Reports indicated that he had been eating only yoghurt in prison as he feared any meal might have been contaminated. He had been offered the facilities to cook for himself but declined the offer.

Encouragement from the Public

His online presence last week posted a recording of piles of letters, postcards and packages it claimed had been delivered to his attention, including a collage, a chocolate bar and a book. “No correspondence will go unanswered,” his account declared. “The final chapter has not yet been determined.”

Items in Prison

The former leader brought with him a life story of Christ as well as the classic novel, the famous work in which an innocent man is sentenced to jail but breaks out to take revenge.

Court Case Details

During the lengthy court case, the state attorney had told the court that Sarkozy entered into a “corrupt agreement” of corruption with one of the worst rulers of the last three decades.

Sarkozy maintained his innocence and stated he had not been involved in a illegal scheme to obtain campaign finances from Libya.

He was found not guilty of three distinct accusations of dishonesty, improper handling of state money and illegal election campaign funding. After the public attorney also challenged these acquittals, Sarkozy will be judged again on all the accusations next year, including illegal collaboration.

Prior Legal Issues

Although the claims of a secret campaign funding pact with the Libyan regime formed the biggest corruption trial Sarkozy had encountered, he had already been found guilty in two separate cases and stripped of France’s top honor, the national recognition.

The former president had previously become the initial ex-leader forced to wear an electronic tag after being found guilty in a separate case of corruption and improper sway. In that case, he was given a one-year jail term but was able to serve it with an ankle monitor attached to his leg. He wore the tag for a quarter year before being allowed limited freedom.