Together, the defendants accused of raping Gisèle Pelicot are facing more than 600 years in prison.
According to foreign media, they are young, old, big, thin, black and white. Among them are firefighters, truck drivers, soldiers, security guards, a journalist and a DJ.
These are the 50 men accused of raping Gisèle Pelicot at the behest of her husband, Dominique Pelicot, 72, who drugged her for a decade with prescription sleeping pills, A2 CNN writes.
The fact that they broadly represent a microcosm of French society means that they are called Monsieur-Tout-Le-Monde (Mr. Everyman).
They will be sentenced next week, concluding a trial that began in September. If convicted, they collectively face more than 600 years in prison.
Some of them act defiant, but mostly look down as they answer the judges' questions, occasionally looking up to meet their lawyers' eyes for reassurance.
Most of the 50, all come from towns and villages within a radius of 50 km (30 miles) of Mazan village of Pelicots, writes A2 CNN.
Some defense attorneys have seen their custom as a valuable line of defense. "Ordinary people do extraordinary things," said Antoine Minier, a lawyer representing three defendants.
"I think almost everyone can end up in a bad situation, maybe not exactly like this, but they can be susceptible to committing a serious crime," he told the BBC. (A2 Televizion)
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