Catherine Porter

She's making sure that every graphic, horrific detail of this case is aired publicly. And you know, when they are played in court, this real awkward silence descends And after a few minutes, many journalists stopped looking at the screens because it's so... Uncomfortable. Her snores are filling the courtroom.

It's just, she is, I mean, one of the doctors in the case described her as a corpse. And she sits there throughout. I have never seen her leave the courtroom while one of those videos is playing.

It's just, she is, I mean, one of the doctors in the case described her as a corpse. And she sits there throughout. I have never seen her leave the courtroom while one of those videos is playing.

I mean, most cases of rape are he said, she said. But here is there's a library of proof. And yet, most of the men say what almost every man says in defense when it comes to rape, that they thought she was consenting. Most of them say that they had not come to rape her, but that Mr. Pelico had invited them over for a threesome.

I mean, most cases of rape are he said, she said. But here is there's a library of proof. And yet, most of the men say what almost every man says in defense when it comes to rape, that they thought she was consenting. Most of them say that they had not come to rape her, but that Mr. Pelico had invited them over for a threesome.

And had either explained to them that she was pretending to sleep and it was part of their fantasy that she be woken up by this stranger together with her husband. Or some say that... They were told that she had taken a few sleeping pills just as they got there to help her relax because she was shy. And a few by the end were saying that they believe that Mr. Pellico had also drugged them.

And had either explained to them that she was pretending to sleep and it was part of their fantasy that she be woken up by this stranger together with her husband. Or some say that... They were told that she had taken a few sleeping pills just as they got there to help her relax because she was shy. And a few by the end were saying that they believe that Mr. Pellico had also drugged them.

that even though in the videos they seemed totally normal and weren't sleeping, were very active, that they have no memory of what happened in there, and they believe that somehow he had slipped something into a glass of water and had drugged them.

that even though in the videos they seemed totally normal and weren't sleeping, were very active, that they have no memory of what happened in there, and they believe that somehow he had slipped something into a glass of water and had drugged them.

He has pled guilty. He has said that he was traumatized as a child and that he had these impulses that just got stronger and stronger and he couldn't help himself and that his wife did not deserve this and that he loved her despite all the evidence to the contrary.

He has pled guilty. He has said that he was traumatized as a child and that he had these impulses that just got stronger and stronger and he couldn't help himself and that his wife did not deserve this and that he loved her despite all the evidence to the contrary.

Right. He's in fact saying that these men who say they were tricked or they didn't understand that she was drugged, that they're all lying. That he says, clearly, I am a rapist and all of these men in the room are rapists just like me.

Right. He's in fact saying that these men who say they were tricked or they didn't understand that she was drugged, that they're all lying. That he says, clearly, I am a rapist and all of these men in the room are rapists just like me.

Well, let me tell you what I've experienced going to the courtroom. You know, the first few days, there were just a few reporters. And then by, I would say, the second week, there were not just many more reporters. There were crowds and crowds of mostly women coming to get a seat in this courthouse to watch her. Wow.

Well, let me tell you what I've experienced going to the courtroom. You know, the first few days, there were just a few reporters. And then by, I would say, the second week, there were not just many more reporters. There were crowds and crowds of mostly women coming to get a seat in this courthouse to watch her. Wow.

I'm standing outside the courtroom, and people are leaving, and there's a walkway that has formed of spectators, mostly women, outside the... Oh, and they are applauding Madame Palico while she walks out. You can hear them applauding, saying bravo. And when she would leave the courtroom at the end of every day, they started to form an honor line and line her route to applaud her and cheer her.

I'm standing outside the courtroom, and people are leaving, and there's a walkway that has formed of spectators, mostly women, outside the... Oh, and they are applauding Madame Palico while she walks out. You can hear them applauding, saying bravo. And when she would leave the courtroom at the end of every day, they started to form an honor line and line her route to applaud her and cheer her.

And that crowd has not subsided. You know, I met a bunch of feminists that are part of a small feminist organization in Avignon, in the courthouse. They've been going regularly to watch the trial. And at night, they have been taking what they've heard inside the courtroom and pasting it on the walls of Avignon.

And that crowd has not subsided. You know, I met a bunch of feminists that are part of a small feminist organization in Avignon, in the courthouse. They've been going regularly to watch the trial. And at night, they have been taking what they've heard inside the courtroom and pasting it on the walls of Avignon.

in a way to kind of shock the city, I think, and shock the country to listen to what these men were saying in the rooms. So some of them that I passed on the streets on the way to the courthouse were like, it was an involuntary rape or it was an accidental rape. Wow. Or one that really stopped me was I raped her with my body, but not with my mind.