What Awaits Sarkozy in La Santé Prison and What Belongings Has He Taken?
Maybe the nation's most fabled jail, La Santé – where ex-president of France Nicolas Sarkozy has begun a five-year jail term for unlawful collusion to raise election financing from Libya – stands as the sole surviving prison within the Paris city limits.
Situated in the southern Montparnasse neighborhood of the capital, it was inaugurated in the year 1867 and was the site of no fewer than 40 capital punishments, the final one in 1972. Partially shut down for renovation in 2014, the institution resumed operations in 2019 and holds more than 1,100 detainees.
Famous ex- prisoners include poet Guillaume Apollinaire, the rogue trader Jérôme Kerviel, the government official and wartime collaborator Maurice Papon, the entrepreneur and politician Bernard Tapie, the 70s terrorist Carlos the Jackal, and modeling agent Jean-Luc Brunel.
Protected Wing for High-Profile Prisoners
Notable or endangered inmates are typically held in the jail’s QB4 unit for “individuals at risk” – the so-called “VIP section” – in solitary cells, rather than the typical three-person cells, and kept alone during exercise periods for safety concerns.
Situated on the initial level, the ward has nineteen similar cells and a dedicated exercise yard so prisoners are not forced to interact with other prisoners – even though they remain exposed to whistles, insults and mobile snapshots from neighboring units.
Mostly for such concerns, Sarkozy is set to be housed in the segregated section, which is in a distinct block. Practically, conditions are very similar as in the QB4 ward: the past leader will be alone in his cell and supervised by a guard whenever he exits.
“The objective is to prevent any problems at all, so we need to prevent him from meeting other prisoners,” a prison source commented. “The simplest and best method is to send Nicolas Sarkozy directly to isolation.”
Accommodation Details
Each of the isolation and protected units are the same to those in other parts in the institution, measuring about 10 square meters, with window coverings intended to restrict communication, a sleeping cot, a compact desk, a shower unit, WC, and stationary phone with pre-set numbers.
Sarkozy will be served typical prison food but will also have the option to the prison store, where he can acquire items to make his own meals, as well as to a small solitary outdoor space, a gym and the book collection. He can lease a refrigerator for €7.50 a month and a TV for fourteen euros fifteen.
Limited Social Contact
Besides three allowed visits a each week, he will primarily be by himself – a luxury in the prison, which notwithstanding its recent renovation is running at roughly double its intended capacity of 657 detainees. France’s jails are the third most congested in the EU.
Items Brought
Sarkozy, who has consistently maintained his non-guilt, has declared he will be taking with him a life story of Jesus and a edition of The Count of Monte Cristo, by Alexandre Dumas, in which an falsely convicted person is given a sentence to jail but escapes to seek vengeance.
Sarkozy’s attorney, Jean-Michel Darrois, mentioned he was additionally bringing earplugs because the jail can be noisy at during the night, and a few jumpers, because cells can be cold. Sarkozy has said he is unafraid of serving time in jail and intends to use it to compose a manuscript.
Release Prospects
It remains uncertain, though, for how long he will actually remain in La Santé: his attorneys have submitted for his premature release, and an judge on appeal will have to prove a chance of flight, reoffending or interfering with witnesses to warrant his further imprisonment.
French jurists have suggested he could be out within a month.
