What Lies Ahead Sarkozy in the La Santé Facility and What Belongings Has He Taken?
Perhaps France’s most fabled jail, La Santé – in which ex-president of France Nicolas Sarkozy has begun a five-year prison sentence for criminal conspiracy to obtain election financing from Libya – remains the sole surviving prison inside the French capital's boundaries.
Found in the south part of Montparnasse district of the capital, it first opened in the year 1867 and was the scene of at least 40 capital punishments, the final one in 1972. Partially shut down for upgrades in 2014, the facility reopened half a decade later and houses more than 1,100 inmates.
Renowned past detainees comprise poet Guillaume Apollinaire, the financial trader Jérôme Kerviel, the public servant and wartime collaborator Maurice Papon, the tycoon and politician Bernard Tapie, the 70s terrorist Carlos the Jackal, and modeling agent Jean-Luc Brunel.
Special Treatment for High-Profile Prisoners
High-profile or vulnerable inmates are generally accommodated in the prison's QB4 unit for “individuals at risk” – the so-called “VIP quarters” – in solitary cells, rather than the standard three-person rooms, and kept alone during exercise periods for security reasons.
Located on the ground floor, the ward has nineteen similar units and a dedicated outdoor space so inmates are not obliged to mingle with other prisoners – even though they continue to be vulnerable to shouts, insults and smartphone photos from adjacent cells.
Mainly for that reason, Sarkozy will reportedly be held in the segregated section, which is in a distinct block. In reality, conditions are very similar as in the QB4 ward: the former president will be by himself in his unit and supervised by a corrections officer each time he leaves it.
“The objective is to avert any problems whatsoever, so we must block him from meeting other prisoners,” a source within the facility revealed. “The simplest and most efficient solution is to send Nicolas Sarkozy straight to isolation.”
Cell Conditions
Both solitary and VIP rooms are similar to those in other parts in the jail, averaging approximately 10 sq metres, with window blinds intended to restrict interaction, a sleeping cot, a compact desk, a shower, lavatory, and stationary phone with authorized contacts only.
Sarkozy is provided with regular meals but will also have access to the canteen, where he can purchase items to cook for himself, as well as to a small solitary outdoor space, a gym and the prison library. He can pay for a fridge for 7.50 euros a per month and a television set for 14.15 euros.
Controlled Interactions
Besides three allowed visits a week, he will mainly be by himself – a luxury in the prison, which in spite of its recent upgrades is functioning at roughly double its designed capacity of 657 inmates. The country's correctional facilities are the third most overcrowded in the European Union.
Prison Supplies
Sarkozy, who has steadfastly asserted his non-guilt, has said he will be taking with him a account of Jesus and a version of The Count of Monte Cristo, by Alexandre Dumas, in which an falsely convicted person is condemned to jail but flees to seek vengeance.
Sarkozy’s attorney, Jean-Michel Darrois, said he was also bringing noise blockers because the jail can be loud at nighttime, and multiple sweaters, because rooms can be chilly. Sarkozy has commented he is not scared of serving time in prison and aims to utilize the time to write a manuscript.
Release Prospects
It remains uncertain, though, for how long he will actually be housed in the facility: his attorneys have already filed for his premature release, and an appeals judge will need to demonstrate a chance of absconding, reoffending or influencing testimony to justify his ongoing incarceration.
French law specialists have suggested he could be out in less than a month.