Overview

• A Paris court sentenced Nicolas Sarkozy to five years in prison with exécution provisoire and a deferred committal order, and he has announced an appeal while denying guilt and rejecting any presidential pardon.
• The Paris prosecutor opened two investigations into threatening messages targeting the presiding magistrate, and Emmanuel Macron directed the justice and interior ministers to identify and prosecute those responsible.
• The Conseil supérieur de la magistrature and Justice Minister Gérald Darmanin condemned the threats, as the Syndicat de la magistrature criticized what it called the president’s earlier silence and defended judges’ impartiality.
• François Bayrou questioned the broader use of exécution provisoire, arguing it can strip appeals of real effect, and Marine Le Pen echoed the criticism after facing the same measure in her own case.
• Dominique de Villepin warned that attacks on the judiciary are dangerous for democracy, Sophie Binet said the ruling shows an independent justice, and commentary continued over the tribunal’s impartiality and potential political gains for the RN.