“This is one of the biggest legal errors of the twentieth century that we are going to rectify thanks to the Court of Revision”Sylvie Noachovitch, lawyer for Omar Raddad, told Franceinfo Thursday, December 16, after the Court of Revision’s decision to order new investigative acts as part of additional information. This decision comes 27 years after the gardener was sentenced for the murder of Ghislaine Marchal, before benefiting from a partial pardon in 1996. He has always claimed his innocence.
franceinfo: What is your first reaction to this decision of the Court of Revision?
Sylvie Noachovitch : Omar Raddad is not here today because he was too afraid of a refusal. He was extremely traumatized by all the refusals he received. Today, I am his spokesperson and I would like to inform you that the Court of Revision has granted my request. This is of course a decision that honors justice. There is more information that has been ordered, and there will indeed be additional research. Omar Raddad would like to sincerely thank his support committee, but also the journalists, from the bottom of his heart. The battle is not over, we are moving towards judicial truth and in the name of truth, also in the name of Mr Omar Raddad, I declare: “Long live justice”!
What will happen now?
There will be a reopening of the trial, since this Court of Revision reopens the file with, indeed, the additional information that I requested in the alternative, as part of my brief on all the expertises that I requested. and in particular this famous DNA which appears 35 times, on writings and in mixture.
What exactly are you hoping for?
We hope there is a name on this DNA. We hope this will get us all the way to the Review Court, and this decision is a step toward the Review Court, a step toward review. This is one of the biggest legal errors of the twentieth century, which we are going to rectify thanks to the Court of Revision. It is an immense joy that I share with Omar Raddad. We can believe in justice, we can remain confident. We have been fighting since 2008 and we have done well. We can also thank the supporters, like of course Georges Fenech who made the law of 2014, and also our support of Omar Raddad, Jean-Marie Rouart. It is a great honor and I am happy.
What did Omar Raddad tell you when you broke the news to him over the phone?
Omar Raddad is very happy. He regains confidence in justice. It is a real hope. I don’t know if you can imagine, but in 2008, when I took over the case, no one believed me. Everyone told me that the file was buried and closed. Well no ! The case is reopened to the delight of Omar Raddad, because he has always, since day one, proclaimed his innocence. This is really one of the biggest legal errors of the twentieth century which will be rectified and I will tell you an important thing: the writings in letters of blood that we found on the doors and which convicted an innocent person. who has been fighting for 30 years will, I hope today, allow him to rectify this miscarriage of justice.
What are the next steps ?
The investigating committee will investigate this case and study the DNA that I brought to this trial in November. And then there will be other additional information, which I hope will be ordered and that a real investigation will be carried out to find the real culprit. Even if it is not the role of Omar Raddad to find the culprit. On the other hand, it is public order that this culprit be found, this or these culprits.