At the criminal court, in Paris
Whether on a television set or, like this Wednesday, before the 24th chamber of the Paris Criminal Court, Pierre Ménès does not hide it: he regrets this current post #MeToo era in which, according to him, we cannot no longer put “a pat on the shoulder of a woman” and where any kiss becomes suspicious. “Today, any gesture towards a woman is inappropriate, I speak to you with my experience, of what I have been living for two years”, insists the 59-year-old former sports columnist. The man, all dressed in blue, glasses with wide frames, was however not summoned to discuss the evolution of morals but to respond to three sexual assaults.
The first facts denounced date back to June 18, 2018. Two employees of the Nike store on the Champs-Elysées reported to their hierarchy that they had been the target of inappropriate gestures on the part of Pierre Ménès. The first explained that the columnist had caressed her back to the buttocks. The second said that the latter had first stuck his torso against her chest, exclaiming “but it’s huge”, then had slipped, a few minutes later, behind her, thus rubbing his penis against her buttocks . If the first scene was in a blind spot, surveillance cameras were able to capture the second, accrediting the words of the saleswoman.
Variable geometry memory
Pierre Ménès swears that he does not remember the first saleswoman. As for the second, which was in the basketball department of the store, it was, according to him, a simple joke. “It was for fun, I did a check, chest to chest, like basketball players do,” says the former sports columnist without blinking. And to insist: “given my legendary vertical trigger, I must not have gone very high”. Asked about the incongruity and the inappropriate character of such a gesture by the president, Pierre Ménès sees in it only a mark of “humor” and “conviviality”. “What I did doesn’t shock me, otherwise I wouldn’t have done it,” he says. What about the CCTV footage that shows him staring at the saleswoman’s chest before making a comment?, asks the prosecutor. “Very frankly, I don’t remember his chest,” says the defendant to clear himself.
On the other hand, to justify having slipped behind the young woman, he invokes the “geography of the store”, which he remembers distinctly this time. “Objectively, there was no room for me to pass, I certainly put my hand out to tell him that I was passing. “And what does the embarrassed look of the young woman who appears very clearly on the video matter. But to hear Pierre Ménès this Wednesday, he is the first victim of this affair. “I am extremely shocked that the two events happened on the same day, I think there is consultation,” he insists. A “set-up”, also, in his eyes, the accusations made two years later by a hostess of the Parc des Princes. She claims that Pierre Ménès stuck to her while she was busy with a client and took the opportunity to touch her chest. But in this section, the videos are not conclusive and another hostess, however cited by the victim, claims to have noticed nothing. “It is the very nature of the set-up,” insists the defendant.
“Commonalisation of reprehensible behavior”
What interest did the victims have in trapping him? Asks the public prosecutor. Especially since none of these women wanted to file a complaint, nor did they appear at the hearing to testify against him and claim damages. Pierre Ménès sees in their absence the proof that they do not wish to be confronted with him. In convoluted explanations, he evokes his very “cash” chronicles and which did not please everyone. These young women, however, have nothing to do with sports or journalism, insists the public prosecutor. “We were able to suggest to them…”, he replies tit for tat.
Denouncing a “trivialization of behavior that is criminally reprehensible”, the prosecutor requested 8 months suspended prison sentence, 10,000 euros fine as well as registration in Fijais, the file of perpetrators of sexual offenses. “This is not the top of the spectrum of sexual assault, we have seen more serious facts in this court, but I say that we have here elements which make it possible to characterize gestures with a sexual connotation. ». The decision was reserved for April 19.