French woman on trial for alleged murder of rapist & abuser, stepfather who became her husband

The trial is ongoing and is expected to last five days.

Syahindah Ishak | June 22, 2021, 09:23 PM

An ongoing murder trial in France has received global attention.

Valerie Bacot, 40, is facing life sentence for allegedly shooting her husband dead in 2016, as reported by BBC.

Her husband, Daniel Polette, had abused her physically and sexually for years, first as her stepfather and allegedly later as her husband.

Started sexually abusing her when she was 12

When Bacot was 12, Polette, who was her mother's partner at the time, began raping her. He was 25 years older than her.

Polette was then convicted of rape and was sent to prison for two and a half years, according to CNN.

However, after his release, he returned to Bacot and allegedly continued the abuse.

When Bacot was 17, Polette impregnated her. He then allegedly forced her to marry him.

He also fathered another three children with her.

Forced her to marry him and fathered four children with her

Physical abuse was allegedly a daily occurrence throughout their marriage, according to The Guardian.

Polette had purportedly broken Bacot's nose and hit her head with a hammer. She was also not allowed to speak to anyone when she went out.

BBC reported that Polette had allegedly forced Bacot to prostitute herself from a vehicle.

He also allegedly threatened to kill Bacot and her children on multiple occasions, CNN reported.

Bacot and her children were said to have lived in fear.

She shot him in March 2016

Things took a turn when Polette supposedly begun questioning his and Bacot's 14-year old daughter about her sexuality, as reported by France24.

Not wanting her daughter to experience what she went through, Bacot said: "I wanted to save her."

In March 2016, Bacot used a pistol Polette had kept in his car and shot him with a single bullet to the back of his neck.

She then hid the body in a forest with the help of two of her four children.

In October 2017,  she was arrested and she confessed to the killing. The murder trial, which started on Monday (June 21, 2021), is expected to last five days, according to CNN.

Top photo via Getty Images.