Gisèle Pelicot recounts ex-husband's "unthinkable" crimes in first U.S. TV interview

Gisèle Pelicot, the French pistillate who became a planetary awesome of courageousness erstwhile she publicly stepped forward to attest against her ex-husband and dozens of different men successful a wide rape trial, told "CBS Sunday Morning" that she believes her communicative "could beryllium utile to others."

That's wherefore she's opening up astir her communicative successful a memoir, "A Hymn to Life: Shame Has to Change Sides." She said she's speaking straight to those who mightiness ask, "How could this pistillate spell done what she went done and inactive beryllium standing?"

In her archetypal U.S. broadcast interview, airing connected "CBS Sunday Morning" February 15, Pelicot told analogous Seth Doane that she "used to beryllium a precise discreet woman." 

Pelicot waived her close to anonymity and insisted tribunal proceedings beryllium made nationalist during the 4-month proceedings against her ex-husband, Dominique Pelicot, and 51 different men accused of raping her implicit the people of astir a decennary astatine his invitation. All the men were found guilty, and Dominique was sentenced to the maximum of 20 years.

In the memoir, Pelicot recounts the daze and fearfulness of discovering that, for years, her then- hubby had been drugging her and recruiting different men to battle her successful their home.

"I ne'er imagined that I was surviving with a antheral who was drugging his woman successful his ain home. It was impossible," she told Doane. 

Pelicot had suffered unexplained wellness problems, and looking back, she says determination were different signs thing was wrong, recalling respective unsettling incidents erstwhile her drinks tasted unusual — astatine times adjacent undrinkable — "as if mint had been enactment successful my glass." She besides recalls her hubby preparing their potatoes separately. But she ne'er imagined her hubby was lacing them.

"How tin you ideate that your hubby is drugging you? It's unthinkable — impossible.  In fact, I was manipulated for astir 10 years. Because helium was looking maine successful the eyes each time portion knowing helium was poisoning me. But I ne'er saw that. I saw a kind, caring man," she said.

Watch much of Seth Doane's interrogation with Gisèle Pelicot this play connected "CBS Sunday Morning." Pelicot's memoir, "A Hymn to Life," will beryllium published adjacent week by Penguin Press.