The day after the release of judo coach Alain Schmitt, tried Tuesday, November 30 in immediate appearance for aggravated willful violence on his companion, Olympic champion Margaux Pinot, the Bobigny prosecutor’s office decided on Wednesday to appeal.
During her indictment, the public prosecutor requested a 12-month suspended prison sentence against the former member of the France team, with a two-year probationary period. She had also asked for a ban on coming into contact with Margaux Pinot. Late in the evening, the court released Alain Schmitt, considering that it did not have “enough elements” to convict him.
An “unfair” decision, said the lawyer for Margaux Pinot. “The court missed out on a number of dependent elements, such as the neighbors who heard her calls for help, and to whom she took refuge”, regretted Me Stéphane Maugendre, at the exit of the ‘hearing, while his client had left the court in Bobigny, where she had spent a long part of the day, “completely upset”.
Many bruises on the face
During the hearing, the two judokas, in the tumultuous relationship, delivered opposite versions. Alain Schmitt explained that they “were crumpled”, after Margaux Pinot pushed him into the frame of a door. “We grab hold of each other, we wobble in all directions and we hit each other in all directions”, he described, repeating “never have I hit a woman”.
The young woman’s lawyer evokes the traces of blood in the apartment. “I suppose this is the place where it must have rubbed, if there is a lot of blood, it is because we hit a lot”, answers Alain Schmitt, who keeps an eye on this evening. black butter and scratches on the forehead.
Margaux Pinot, who had taken refuge with neighbors, said that after having uttered insults and having put her down, Alain Schmitt grabbed her hair in order to put her on the ground, before assigning her several blows.
Upon their arrival, the police noted numerous bruises on the young woman’s face, while examinations also revealed a broken nose. On Wednesday, the young woman posted a portrait of her on Twitter, revealing the marks on her face.
“With the strength that this man has, he has the capacity to do much more harm than that”, pleaded Me Malik Behloul, adviser to Alain Schmitt, affirming that the sportswoman had lied on the whole line.
“What must be done to ensure that the victims are heard? “
The release of Alain Schmitt also created a stir in the world of judo. Wednesday morning, Clarisse Agbégnénou, teammate of Margaux Pinot, reacted on Twitter. “I don’t have the words to express everything that is going on in my head and my body as a woman in the face of what my teammate Margaux Pinot has gone through. All the more shocked by the court’s decision. What does it take for the sanctions to fall, death? »Writes the double Olympic champion in Tokyo.
“Relaxed, did you say?” Lack of evidence you said? Asks another judokate, Amandine Buchard. So many campaigns against violence against women for that? Today, it’s sad to say it, but as long as there is no death at the end, it’s still 50/50. What is Justice waiting for to crack down … to punish. “
Double medalist in Tokyo, Amandine Buchard also relayed the photos of Margaux Pinot, the swollen face. Tuesday, facing journalists, Margaux Pinot had chosen to hide her face behind dark glasses. This Wednesday, she decided to publish the photos taken on Sunday.
The judokates of the France team are not the only ones to have reacted. Teddy Riner, icon of the discipline and former teammate of Alain Schmitt, is also stepping up to the plate on his social networks. “We are all deeply touched by what our teammate Margaux Pinot has just suffered and we give her our full support. What must be done to ensure that victims are heard? That the attackers be convicted? He asks. Every day, women, children and the most disadvantaged face violence, whether physical or moral. It is intolerable, unacceptable. This fight must become a priority, the victims must be better supported and better protected… It is a question of life and death. “
More broadly, the political world has also taken up this case, and in particular Élisabeth Moreno, Minister Delegate to the Prime Minister, responsible among other things for Equality between women and men. On Twitter, this Wednesday at the end of the afternoon she writes: “Let us trust in Justice. In the face of violence against women, we must #NeRienLaisserPasser. »
