A French woman, Emilie G., is facing a life sentence after prosecutors appealed her suspended sentence for killing her bedridden grandfather in 2020. She claimed it was an act of mercy, but prosecutors call it a selfish crime. The case has sparked debate amid France’s push for assisted dying legislation.

A woman convicted of killing her bedridden grandfather by setting his mattress on fire returned to court in France on Monday, now facing the possibility of a life sentence after prosecutors appealed what they considered a too-lenient punishment.

The 95-year-old man was discovered dead from severe burns and smoke inhalation in his bed in August 2020. His granddaughter, Emilie G., 33, admitted to killing him, describing the act as one of “love” intended to end his suffering.

In October 2024, a court found her guilty and issued a five-year suspended sentence. However, prosecutors appealed the ruling, labeling the sentence as inadequate for what they characterized as a “cruel and selfish act.”

The appeal hearings began Monday in the eastern French town of Bourg-en-Bresse, with Emilie G. now facing a possible life term.

During the original trial, Emilie, who was reported by psychiatric experts to be suffering from depression, said she felt overwhelmed by the demands of caring for her elderly grandfather while simultaneously raising her children and navigating a deteriorating romantic relationship.

On the day she learned that her partner had been unfaithful, she poured gasoline over her grandfather’s mattress and threw a lit piece of paper onto the bed before fleeing the room.

Prosecutor Romain Ducrocq argued that Emilie’s actions stemmed from a desire to “exorcise her frustration and multiple failures.” However, the defendant maintained that her motive was to end the suffering of a man she loved deeply and had looked after for years — someone she viewed not just as a grandfather, but as a father figure.

She claimed her grandfather had repeatedly asked her to end his life, including just a month before the incident, after she discovered him lying in his own excrement. Emilie said she had not shared this information with other family members.

“The bond between this granddaughter and her grandfather was extremely close,” her lawyer Thibaud Claus stated, emphasizing that there was “no debt, no inheritance” involved that might have served as a motive. “It was an act of love,” he added, speaking ahead of the appeal hearings, which are scheduled to run until Wednesday.

“She realizes in hindsight that she shouldn’t have done it — and certainly not in that way — but at the time, she lacked the strength to consider any other option,” Claus told AFP.

Emilie’s family members have continued to support her, commending her for the courage to act in what they describe as a desperate situation.

A psychiatric evaluation concluded that she was in a “dissociative state” during the act, which significantly impaired her judgment.

The appeal trial comes as France revisits the national conversation on assisted dying. In late May, the lower house of parliament approved a proposed right-to-die bill. If the Senate agrees on the same version, the law could allow patients, under strictly defined conditions, to receive medical assistance in ending their lives.

Emilie’s lawyer stressed that her case was not an argument for legal euthanasia but rather a reflection of a family confronted with extremely limited options.

“We are not advocating euthanasia,” Claus said. “But it’s important to acknowledge that this was a case of euthanasia within a family faced with a desperate situation. They acted — though perhaps not in the best way — as best as they could.”

If the bill is ultimately passed, France would join a small group of European countries — including Germany, Spain, Austria, and Switzerland — that legally permit assisted dying.

AFP