Expert Testimonies Highlight Trauma in Le Scouarnec Abuse Trial
Psychiatrists and a psychotherapist emphasize the severe psychological impact of abuse, even in cases where victims do not recall the events, as the trial enters its eighth week.
- Joël Le Scouarnec, a former surgeon, is on trial for 300 sexual assaults and rapes committed over decades, facing up to 20 years in prison.
- The trial, now in its eighth week at the Criminal Court of Morbihan, is expected to conclude with a verdict by the end of May 2025.
- Expert witnesses, including two psychiatrists and a psychotherapist, testified about the profound and lasting effects of abuse on child victims, regardless of memory recall.
- The testimonies addressed complex questions on why many victims do not disclose or remember their abuse, shedding light on the challenges of prosecuting historical cases.
- The case underscores systemic institutional failures that allowed the abuse to persist over decades, prompting calls for legal and structural reforms.
Le Nouvel Obs 
Le Figaro 