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As he arrived at La Santé prison this week, Nicolas Sarkozy published a statement brimming with defiance via social media, writing, "This isn't a ex-leader of the nation who is being jailed today, it's an innocent man." An appellate court will in time decide regarding the truthfulness of his claim. Yet sadly for the ex-president, the drama and importance of his fall cannot be dismissed.

The Guilty Verdict

President of France between 2007 and 2012, the former president was judged culpable of illegal collaboration to secure prohibited donations from the regime of the late Libyan dictator, Muammar Gaddafi. Handed a half-decade incarceration, he has become the first former leader of an EU member state to enter prison, and the first French leader since the dishonored head of the Vichy regime, Marshal Pétain. Across France where the chosen leader holds a near-royal standing, the recent remarkable event was a seminal moment.

Public Trust and Legal Consequences

In an era when trust in government bodies in France has plummeted to the point where warning signs are evident, it was also a salutary demonstration that the law applies to all. In a poll issued on Tuesday, two-thirds of respondents indicated that they believed a majority of politicians were unethical, and nearly nine out of 10 claimed that most acted mainly out of personal gain. When convicting Mr Sarkozy and mandating that his prison term should commence promptly, the presiding magistrate, Nathalie Gavarino, said that she factored in both the exceptionally grave nature of the offences and the fact that they were "likely to undermine the people's faith."

Courtroom Struggles

Those thoughts might be deemed typical, especially given that Mr Sarkozy has before been found guilty in other graft trials. Yet the former president's case and its consequences have troublingly exposed the extent to which in France, as in different nations, the rule of law is endangered by a recently popular contempt for the judiciary and the effort to control of the popular view.

In Trumpian fashion, an comprehensive and precise judicial procedure has been baselessly portrayed by the former president's allies as a legal conspiracy and ideological revenge. Subsequent to the decision recently, the ex-leader publicly criticized his judgment as invalid and decried the "animosity" with "no limits" that reportedly inspired it. Since prominent officials and backers from the right and far right have saturated public discourse and traditional outlets with the same talking points, Ms Gavarino has been subjected to numerous death threats.

Public Response

Reassuringly, the population largely rejects this narrative. A survey after the ruling found significant majorities supporting both the handling of the courtroom process and his sentencing. But the drama, and the blatant effort to weaken the standing of the court system, was in all likelihood only a preliminary test. In January, Marine Le Pen's court petition against a conviction for diversion of electoral finances will take place. Should she lose it, the far-right National Rally leader will be disqualified from competing in the upcoming election.

Long-term Effects

Within a divided and skeptical country, that will be a perilous moment for the French judiciary to handle. Mr Sarkozy may yet be released prior to his appeal hearing, subsequent to a petition by his attorneys. Yet the unfounded and damaging assaults on the court system throughout his proceedings have established a harmful example.