Émile Louis
Encyclopedia
Émile Louis is a retired French
bus driver and prime suspect in the disappearance of seven young women in the département of Yonne
, Burgundy
, in the late 1970s. In 2000 Louis confessed to their murders; he retracted this confession one month later.
Louis is currently (since March 2004) serving a 20-year jail sentence for the rape
and torture
of his last wife and of her daughter. He was also twice convicted of sexual attacks on minor
s: once in 1983 for which he was sentenced to four years in prison, and again in 1989 with a five-year jail term.
One recurring question is how the justice system could have ignored this string of disappearances for so long, even though suspicions had grown and some official reports indicated probable foul play. In particular, gendarme Christian Jambert submitted a report in 1984 designating Louis as a prime suspect. On August 4, 1997, Jambert was found dead and judicial authorities found the cause to be suicide. However, an examination of his skull on March 31, 2004, indicated that two bullets had entered the brain, and both should have instantly been fatal.
In 1992, Pierre Charrier, the head of the Yonne APAJH association managing the home for handicapped young people where the missing girls had been staying, was sentenced to six years in prison for raping a 23-year-old handicapped woman. Nine years before, Nicole Charrier, his spouse, had testified in favor of Louis. In 2001, Nicole Charrier was removed from her management position at APAJH.
The lack of reaction on the part of judicial authorities has led to suspicions that the blocking of enquiries was not out of negligence or incompetency, but because of the possible involvement of locally well-connected people in a network providing sadistic
prostitution services.
One issue in the legal treatment of Louis actions is prescription (the statute of limitations
). Even if Louis admitted to crimes committed in the late 1970s, it might be impossible to prosecute him. The Court of Cassation
ruled that certain acts that before would not have been considered to be interrupting prescription, but in fact interrupted prescription.
Louis' trial by the Yonne assize court for the seven murders started on November 3, 2004. On November 10, the court visited the location where the bodies of two victims, Madeleine Dejust and Jacqueline Weis, were exhumed after Louis confessed their location to the Gendarmerie. Louis has retracted his confession and maintains his innocence.
of the Var
for the rape and torture of his second wife and his stepdaughter to 20 years in prison, two-thirds of which are without parole. With this last disposition, the jury
went beyond the requests of the prosecution.
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
bus driver and prime suspect in the disappearance of seven young women in the département of Yonne
Yonne
Yonne is a French department named after the Yonne River. It is one of the four constituent departments of Burgundy in eastern France and its prefecture is Auxerre. Its official number is 89....
, Burgundy
Bourgogne
Burgundy is one of the 27 regions of France.The name comes from the Burgundians, an ancient Germanic people who settled in the area in early Middle-age. The region of Burgundy is both larger than the old Duchy of Burgundy and smaller than the area ruled by the Dukes of Burgundy, from the modern...
, in the late 1970s. In 2000 Louis confessed to their murders; he retracted this confession one month later.
Louis is currently (since March 2004) serving a 20-year jail sentence for the rape
Rape
Rape is a type of sexual assault usually involving sexual intercourse, which is initiated by one or more persons against another person without that person's consent. The act may be carried out by physical force, coercion, abuse of authority or with a person who is incapable of valid consent. The...
and torture
Torture
Torture is the act of inflicting severe pain as a means of punishment, revenge, forcing information or a confession, or simply as an act of cruelty. Throughout history, torture has often been used as a method of political re-education, interrogation, punishment, and coercion...
of his last wife and of her daughter. He was also twice convicted of sexual attacks on minor
Minor (law)
In law, a minor is a person under a certain age — the age of majority — which legally demarcates childhood from adulthood; the age depends upon jurisdiction and application, but is typically 18...
s: once in 1983 for which he was sentenced to four years in prison, and again in 1989 with a five-year jail term.
Disappearances
Louis is a prime suspect in the disappearances in the Yonne Département of seven young women with mild mental deficiencies between 1975 and 1980. The disappearances initially did not attract much attention, as the girls had no close relatives and lived in homes for the handicapped; it was assumed that they had simply run away. Louis confessed to murdering the seven girls in 2000, then promptly retracted his statement. However, his statement led police to find the remains of two of the victims. Louis allegedly kidnapped the girls while driving a bus meant to transport them.One recurring question is how the justice system could have ignored this string of disappearances for so long, even though suspicions had grown and some official reports indicated probable foul play. In particular, gendarme Christian Jambert submitted a report in 1984 designating Louis as a prime suspect. On August 4, 1997, Jambert was found dead and judicial authorities found the cause to be suicide. However, an examination of his skull on March 31, 2004, indicated that two bullets had entered the brain, and both should have instantly been fatal.
In 1992, Pierre Charrier, the head of the Yonne APAJH association managing the home for handicapped young people where the missing girls had been staying, was sentenced to six years in prison for raping a 23-year-old handicapped woman. Nine years before, Nicole Charrier, his spouse, had testified in favor of Louis. In 2001, Nicole Charrier was removed from her management position at APAJH.
The lack of reaction on the part of judicial authorities has led to suspicions that the blocking of enquiries was not out of negligence or incompetency, but because of the possible involvement of locally well-connected people in a network providing sadistic
Sadism and masochism
Sadomasochism broadly refers to the receiving of pleasure—often sexual—from acts involving the infliction or reception of pain or humiliation. The name originates from two authors on the subject, Marquis de Sade and Leopold von Sacher-Masoch...
prostitution services.
One issue in the legal treatment of Louis actions is prescription (the statute of limitations
Statute of limitations
A statute of limitations is an enactment in a common law legal system that sets the maximum time after an event that legal proceedings based on that event may be initiated...
). Even if Louis admitted to crimes committed in the late 1970s, it might be impossible to prosecute him. The Court of Cassation
Court of Cassation (France)
The French Supreme Court of Judicature is France's court of last resort having jurisdiction over all matters triable in the judicial stream but only scope of review to determine a miscarriage of justice or certify a question of law based solely on points of law...
ruled that certain acts that before would not have been considered to be interrupting prescription, but in fact interrupted prescription.
Louis' trial by the Yonne assize court for the seven murders started on November 3, 2004. On November 10, the court visited the location where the bodies of two victims, Madeleine Dejust and Jacqueline Weis, were exhumed after Louis confessed their location to the Gendarmerie. Louis has retracted his confession and maintains his innocence.
List of alleged victims
- Madeleine Dejust
- Chantal Gras
- Bernadette Lemoine
- Christine Marlot
- Martine Renault
- Jacqueline Weiss
- Françoise Lemoine
Sentencing
On March 26, 2004, Louis was sentenced by the cour d'assisesCour d'assises
A French cour d'assises or Assize Court is a criminal trial court with original and appellate limited jurisdiction to hear cases involving defendants accused of major felonies or indictable offences, or crimes in French, and one of the few to be decided by jury trialUnder French law, a crime is any...
of the Var
Var (département)
The Var is a French department in the region Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur in Provence, in southeast France. It takes its name from the river Var, which used to flow along its eastern boundary, but the boundary was moved in 1860...
for the rape and torture of his second wife and his stepdaughter to 20 years in prison, two-thirds of which are without parole. With this last disposition, the jury
Jury
A jury is a sworn body of people convened to render an impartial verdict officially submitted to them by a court, or to set a penalty or judgment. Modern juries tend to be found in courts to ascertain the guilt, or lack thereof, in a crime. In Anglophone jurisdictions, the verdict may be guilty,...
went beyond the requests of the prosecution.