The Aix-en-Provence criminal court sentenced Jean-Philippe Dambreville, director of the local conservatory, to a suspended prison sentence of ten months. The conductor held this position for ten years and was found guilty of sexual harassment on Tuesday July 4. During the hearing on Friday June 30, the prosecution had requested an 18-month suspended sentence against him. He was also ordered to pay 1,800 euros for legal costs and 4,000 euros in damages for non-pecuniary damage to his victim, who has been accompanying the conservatory since 1999.
At the exit of the court, the defendant’s lawyer, Philippe Bonfils considers the sentence of his client as “measured”. He explains to Marsactu: “I understand the suffering of the civil party, but it is a feeling that does not correspond to the reality of the facts alleged against my client. I maintain that the offense was not made out except with the context. Too much space has been given to it.” Jean-Philippe Dambreville will not be registered in the file of sex offenders. His lawyer maintains that his client “is not a crank”.
For his part, the lawyer for the civil party, Pierre Carrascosa, considers the judgment “balanced which recognized Jean-Philippe Dambreville guilty. The court recognized the prejudice and the judicial truth of my client”. As for the non-registration of sex offenders, it “leaves him a door for his professional future”. The city of Aix-en-Provence would also have liked to bring a civil action, but, according to Marsactu, its request was declared inadmissible by the court. The municipality had initially suspended the director of the conservatory. She had conducted an internal investigation which had led to a year and a half suspension of Jean-Philippe Dambreville.