French Justice System Ridiculed Over 'Présumés innocents' Prosecution

Nine years after the exhibition 'Présumés innocents' at CAPC Bordeaux, former director Henry-Claude Cousseau and curators Marie-Laure Bernadac and Stéphanie Moisdon-Trembley face trial for 'dissemination of pornographic image of a minor' and 'dissemination of violent or pornographic message accessible to a minor.' The case, pursued by investigating judges Jean-Louis Croizier and Marie-Noëlle Billaud under the Jolibois amendment, risks up to three years imprisonment and a €75,000 fine. One of two plaintiffs withdrew; 45 of 47 accompanying adults testified satisfaction with the visit, while only two expressed disapproval. The rectorate reported positive feedback from school heads, and museum security confirmed minors could not access controversial works due to a guided route and surveillance. All artists are publicly represented. The judges argued that a video by Elke Krystufek (now representing Austria at the Venice Biennale) in a tunnel prohibited to minors would attract children, and that two consultation copies of the blister-packed catalog were available at the bookstore. The catalog includes a Robert Mapplethorpe photograph of Louise Bourgeois with a giant dildo, and three Cameron Jamie photos of a boy hitting a doll. Separately, Galerie Daniel Templon was charged extra postage by La Poste for invitation cards featuring a partially nude bound woman by Araki, deemed pornographic.