French rape survivor Gisèle Pelicot has told the BBC she is “deeply shocked” that three teenage boys have been spared custodial sentences over the rape of two girls in Hampshire.
Two girls, then aged 15 and 14, were raped in separate incidents in Fordingbridge in November 2024 and January 2025, by two 14-year-olds. Another boy, then 13, was also convicted for his involvement in the second attack.
The attorney general is to review the youth rehabilitation order sentences given by the judge, who had said last week he wanted to avoid criminalising the “very young” boys.
Pelicot said she “saluted the strength” and courage of one of the young girls for speaking out after the attack.
Pelicot was speaking to the BBC after headlining this year’s Hay Festival – an arts and literary festival in Wales.
She told BBC Breakfast she was “deeply shocked that these individuals were in fact able to gain their freedom again when in fact the victims are suffering so hard they will never be able to heal”.
Pelicot, 73, was at the centre of the biggest rape trial in French history, which saw her husband jailed for a 20-year term. Dominique Pelicot repeatedly drugged her unconscious and invited dozens of men to rape her.
“Rape is a crime and justice has an essential role. It’s there to, in fact, name the crimes, to recognise the suffering of victims, and to remember that in fact they must not remain unpunished,” said Pelicot.
She waived her legal right to anonymity in her own trial, saying: “I want all women who have been raped to say: Madame Pelicot did it, I can too.”
One of the victims, who was 15 at the time of the attack, told the BBC’s Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg programme that the decision to spare the offenders custodial sentences was like a “rock straight in my face”.
Pelicot said she hoped her own story “was useful for her to make that decision” to come forward.
“I really salute her strength and the decision she made, because I know that it’s an incredibly difficult decision,” she told BBC Breakfast.
The Fordingbridge case again brought the role of social media into question – after the boys shared video of the attacks online.
Pelicot called on governments and big tech companies to work harder to protect victims.
Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer has described the case as “appalling”, adding that the two girls had “shown extraordinary bravery and strength in heinous circumstances”.
The sentences given by Judge Nicholas Rowland at Southampton Crown Court to the three boys are currently being reviewed by Attorney General Lord Richard Hermer.
One of the 15-year-olds was given a three-year Youth Rehabilitation Order (YRO) with 180 days of intensive supervision and surveillance for the rape of each of the two girls and two indecent images charges.
The other 15-year-old was given the same sentence for three charges of rape against each of the victims and four counts of taking indecent images.
The 14-year-old boy was given an 18-month YRO for charges of rape in the January 2025 attack by encouraging one of the other defendants.
All three boys were also made subject to a three-month curfew and given a restraining order for 10 years not to contact their victims.
The boys would not have been sent to prison if they had been given custodial sentences. People who are aged under 18 serve custodial sentences in secure centres for children.
In his sentencing remarks last week, Judge Rowland said: “I should avoid criminalising these children unnecessarily and understand the effects of their behaviour and support their reintegration into society.”
He stressed the “seriousness” of the crimes, and said the filming of the assaults made them even “more serious” – but also emphasised their “very young ages”.
“None of you need to go to prison today,” he said.
Sentencing guidelines from the Sentencing Council for England and Wales state that courts are expected to prioritise rehabilitation for children, using custody only as a last resort.
In making the sentencing decision, courts look at the seriousness of the case, alongside personal factors – such as age and maturity.
Earlier in the hearing, Judge Rowland spoke directly to one of the teenage victims and told her: “The sentence I’m about to pass cannot undo what has happened to you.
“I hope when you look back you’ll at least take some comfort that you – both of you – have shown great courage.”
The attorney general will have 28 days to decide whether the sentences should be referred to the Court of Appeal.
One of the victims, now 16, she said she and her family wanted the sentences to be changed, and the boys sent to jail, saying the sentences amounted to a “slap on the wrist”.
“Why did I sit and put myself through the pain of going to court, going through a trial, reliving everything because of evidence and watching it all happen again?” the girl asked.
