Forty years have passed since that day in October 1984, when the body of little Grégory was found lifeless in Vologne. Over-publicized, this affair shook France at the end of the 20th century. Since then, Grégory’s parents, Christine and Jean-Marie Villemin, have only spoken publicly on rare occasions, as in the preface, signed by the child’s father, to the comic strip Gregory published this Thursday, October 3.
► 1986: “Let me tell you”, a regret
« SIf I had the strength, I would have said no » » regrets Christine Villemin a few years later, when she talks about her first book Let me tell youpublished two years after the death of his son Grégory.
The couple is then in the middle of a media-judicial storm. Jean-Marie Villemin is serving a five-year sentence (including a suspended sentence) for killing Bernard Laroche, and Christine is indicted in July 1985 for the murder of her son. The media are going wild. Released after having obtained a dismissal of charges for “absence of charges”, she emerged weakened from a hunger strike, which began when she was six months pregnant.
« When someone told me about the book project, I said go for it, that way people will see what you are and that will give us the means to defend ourselves », says Jean-Marie Villemin during the show The March of the Century in 1994. « But on the contrary, this is what partly sunk us. »
Since then, the Villemin couple no longer mention this book. Originally published by Michel Laffont editions, Let me tell you is no longer published today.
► 1994: “The March of the Century”, a real “first time”
Antenna 2, “the first time”. For Jean-Marie Villemin, the show The March of the Centuryrepresents the first real speech of the Villemin couple. For the release of their book October 16presenter Jean-Marie Cavada questions the couple about their meeting, Judge Lambert, their relationships with journalists, the press…
Pre-recorded behind closed doors, without an audience or financial negotiations, the nearly one-hour interview covers more than ten years of “ suspicions », « malfunctions ”, and impact on their private lives. Jean-Marie and Christine Villemin describe their book as “ therapy ».
A notable moment of the show, Grégory’s father believes “ having lost by his action (having shot Bernard LarocheEditor’s note), straight to compassion “. He then responds to the exclusives that the couple would have negotiated at the time. “ We were civil parties, then a year later both were indicted “. The procedure changes, the costs multiply: “cThis allowed us to survive, if it were not for these exclusivities, we would not have been able to reimburse the costs ».
► 2006: in “La Croix”, the long interview
A silence of twelve years before speaking again. In 2006, the spouses chose The Cross to express themselves while a film in six episodes on the Grégory Affair, directed by Raoul Peck and broadcast on France 3.
« We managed to dissociate this story from our current life », declares Jean-Marie Villemin The spouses talk about their reconstruction, their three children born after the tragedy: Julien, “ the child of survival » Emelyne, « the child of hope » and Simon, « the child of a return to a certain serenity », named after Judge Maurice Simon, who succeeded Judge Lambert.
The couple also explain their choice to have secretly exhumed and then cremated their son’s body. “ This gesture allowed us to finally mourn. », analyzes Christine Villemin, adding “nno longer have a belief » since the affair. An opinion shared by her husband: “ With the death of Gregory, then what followed, I no longer believe in Almighty God ».
► 2021: their lawyer’s book, the opportunity to denounce the legal whirlwind
In 2021, Jean-Marie Villemin takes up his pen to sign the afterword to the book by Me Thierry Moser, who has defended the couple since 1985. After paying tribute to the friendship that binds him to the lawyer, Grégory’s father brushes him Judge Lambert, responsible for the case from 1984 to 1987, describing it as “ sad », « versatile », « disowned » by his peers.
Jean-Marie Villemin similarly describes the relentlessness of the Nancy SRPJ and “ from a certain press » to make his wife an ideal culprit.
► 2024 : « Gregory »the tribute comic
« Everything and the opposite of everything was going to be said “. As the forty years of the tragedy approach, Jean-Marie has decided to regain control of the way in which the death of his son is told.
Confident in the preface of Gregory that the idea of a comic strip “ has been running through my head for a long time », he contacted the publishing house Les Arènes, directed by Laurent Beccaria. A young publisher, the latter published the reference work in 1993 The Bonfire of the Innocents which had thrown a harsh light on the media treatment of the tragedy.
The designer Christophe Gaultier and the screenwriter Patrice Perna come together around the project. If the comic book codes have it “ sometimes frustrated “, Jean-Marie Villemin judges that the album, the first volume which looks back on his 1993 trial, ” honors the memory of Grégory “. The second volume, which is due to appear in the fall of 2025, will begin with the announcement of the verdict and will tell the rest of the case.