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The Marina affair is a French judicial and administrative affair connected with the death of Marina Sabatier in France in August 2009, at the age of 8 years, as a result of the abuse inflicted by her two parents Éric Sabatier et Virginie Darras, and at the end of a life of maltreatment suffered by the child. At the end of a trial in June 2012 in the Court of Assizes of the French department the Sarthe, the parents were sentenced to 30 years imprisonment, without possibility of parole for a period of 20 years, for acts of torture and barbarity on Marina over a duration of approximately 6 years that led to their daughter's death. The couple, moving frequently to complicate investigations, concealed violence on Marina by systematic untrue statements on the origin of the girl's injuries, and were even helped by Marina, who, like many abused children, continued despite everything to love her parents and never denounced them.〔(« Comment la petite Marina a protégé ses parents » ), ''Le Monde'', 15 June 2012〕〔(« proces parents Marina » ), ''Le Monde'', 26 June 2012〕 Going beyond the direct responsibility of both parents, major questions were asked on the efficacy and responsibility of different public departments in France for child abuse prevention, which, despite many warning signals transmitted by persons having had direct contact with Marina, did not prevent the little girl's death.〔(« Proces des parents de Marina: les services sociaux n'ont repere aucun danger immédiat » ), ''Le Monde'', 19 June 2012〕〔(« Pour nous l'état est un complice silencieux » ), ''Le Nouvel Observateur'', 28 June 2012〕〔(« les services sociaux qui ont tardé à réagir attendus à la barre pour s'expliquer » ), ''Le Nouvel Observateur'', 18 June 2012〕〔(« Marina morte après 6 ans de tortures » ), ''Europe 1'', 11 June 2012〕〔(« Marina aurait pu être sauvée 1000 fois » ), ''Directmatin.fr'', 16 June 2012〕 == Résumé of Marina's maltreatment == Marina Sabatier was the daughter of Éric Sabatier and Virginie Darras. An unwanted child, she was born on February 27, 2001 and taken onto care, but retrieved by her mother one month later, who reestabilshed a relationship with Éric Sabatier after a separation begun during pregnancy. Virginie Darras already had a son by another union, and, after the birth of Marina, would eventually have a total of 4 other children with Éric Sabatier. Violence on Marina began probably from her early age. Marina had a crooked finger since about 1 year of age, supposedly due to a fall from her high chair. Over several years and until the fateful night of August 2009, Marina was a maltreated child. Only Marina underwent cruel and inhuman treatment, and the other children of the family were spared this abuse. Parents regularly give Marina kicks, fist punches, lashings with belts and iron bars, and inflicted numerous other abuses such as cold showers, holding her head under water in the bathtub until suffocation, forcing her to eat salt and vinegar and vomit, and starvation for several days.〔(« Les details de la maltraitance de la petite marina emeuvent » ), ''Le Figaro'', 15 June 2012〕 They imposed punishments such as walking her barefoot over rough ground carrying a heavy bag and sometimes gagged their daughter with duct tape, or fastened her to her bed. In 2006, a sister of Virginia Darras became worried after witnessing the beatings inflicted on her niece. Marina's grandmother contacted the maltreatment hotline but was unable to convince that her report was serious. In 2007, at Marina'a school of Parennes in the Sarthe region of France, teachers suspected maltreatment and informed the school doctor who after meeting Éric Sabatier detected no problem and believed the father's explanations of a mysterious genetic disease. After a move in May 2008, the family arrived in Saint-Denis-d'Orques. The school headmistress received from Marina's old school information about suspicions of abuse. The headmistress, joined in her efforts by the school doctor, rapidly pointed out Marina'a case to the social services of the public prosecutor's office. An investigation was opened and in July 2008, during a meeting with a medical examiner who had counted more than 19 injuries on the little girl, Éric Sabatier claimed all Marina's lesions were accidents of everyday life.〔(« Marina le temoignage bouleversant » ), ''France 3 Pays de la Loire'', 14 June 2012〕 July 23, 2008, the girl was heard alone by two police constables who questioned her about all her scars. The examination, video recorded and which would be screened at the parents' trial in June 2012, showed a girl small for her age, smiling, bright and laughing, who never failingly gave an innocent explanation of each and every mark on her body.〔(« face aux gendarmes, le mensonge poignant pour protéger ses parents » ), ''Ouest-France'', 14 June 2012〕〔(« Procès Marina, rires larmes et tremblements » ), ''Le petit Courrier, l’écho de la Vallée du Loir'', 15 June 2012〕 At the trial in June 2012, Virginie Darras recalled having threatened her daughter that she would never see her parents again and that they could go to jail if she spoke to the police. Numerous testimonies showed that Marina had always continued to love her parents and that her untrue explanations of her injuries were intended to protect her parents.〔(« La petite Marina aimait ses parents malgré les coups répétés » ), ''L'Express'', 14 June 2012〕 The police constable in charge of the investigation never met the officials who originated the alert,〔(« Les services sociaux qui ont tardé à réagir attendus à la barre pour s'expliquer » ), ''Le Nouvel Observateur'', 18 June 2012〕 and in October 10, 2008, the investigation by the public prosecutor's office was terminated without further action. On its side, the child welfare service (L'aide sociale à l'enfance (l'ASE)) of the Sarthe enquired on 9 March 2009 of the outcome of the investigation opened by the public prosecutor's office of the French city le Mans and in April 2009, called for an evaluative investigation after a new report of the headmaster of Marina's school. The document sent by the school referred to "repeated and unjustified absenteeism, small unexplained injuries, and a bulimic behaviour". On April 27, 2009, Marina returned from vacation with serious foot injuries. She was in a new school in Coulans-sur-Gée. The school headmistress and the school doctor urgently sent her to hospital for treatment where she stayed for 5 weeks. The hospital vainly sought a medical explanation for the little girl's state, then reported to social services suspicions of abuse. Despite this, on May 28, 2009 the little girl was returned to her family. The investigation by the child welfare service (ASE) could only begin on May 25, 2009 and in June 2009, the social worker responsible for the investigation and a nursery nurse visited the Sabatier family. They detected "no element of danger" with children who were "relaxed and smiling".〔(« Les services sociaux n'ont repéré aucun danger immédiat » ), ''Le Monde'', 19 June 2012〕 Marina died during the night of the 6 to 7 August 2009 as a result of a particularly brutal session of abuse that evening by her parents.〔(« Bonne nuit Maman à demain » ), ''Europe 1'', 19 June 2012〕 Before being left naked in the cellar before nightfall, she allegedly uttered her last words that she had "mal à la tête" (a headache) and followed by "bonne nuit maman à demain" (goodnight, Mummy, see you tomorrow).〔(« Bonne nuit Maman à demain » ), ''Europe 1'', 19 June 2012〕 On September 9, 2009 Éric Sabatier alerted the gendarmerie of the disappearance of his daughter. He stated at the time to investigators that Marina had Down syndrome.〔(« Parents "dumped body in concrete" » ), ''BBC News'', 13 September 2009〕〔(« Parents who claimed that daughter was kidnapped are charged with her murder » ), ''Daily Mail'', 5 June 2012〕〔(« French parents guilty of torturing 8-year-old daughter to death » ), ''Daily Telegraph'', 27 June 2012〕 But this was a ruse to explain his daughter's appearance in some photographs. In reality, Marina was a normal little girl who after years of head beatings had finally become disfigured. After three days of searching, investigators discovered inconsistencies in the information provided by the parents. Then the parents confessed. The father led investigators to the girl's body, which was enclosed in a plastic crate filled with concrete, wrapped in a sheet and 10 plastic bags.〔〔(« Parents "dumped body in concrete" » ), ''BBC News'', 13 September 2009〕 The pathologist stated at the parents' trial and after the autopsy that the causes of death were from an acute subdural haematoma, caused by a shock on the head, accumulated with asphyxiation by immersing repeatedly the head of the little girl under water and compounded by hypothermia and inhalation of vomit. During a coma due to the shock on the head and a major pulmonary oedema, Marina died around 4 am on 7 August 2009.〔(« Marina est morte d'un choc à la tête » ), ''Le Figaro'', 20 June 2012〕 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「The Marina Affair」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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