Little Demon in the City of Light: A True Story of Murder and Mesmerism in Belle Epoque Paris (51 page)

(
illustration credit 15
)

Gabrielle’s defense attorney was the young Henri Robert (pictured here in later years), a renowned, intellectually nimble advocate who had already kept many accused criminals from the guillotine.

(
illustration credit 16
)

Félix Decori, noted for his Mephistophelian mustache, had the difficult task of defending Michel Eyraud.

(
illustration credit 17
)

The courtroom drama turned on the question of whether Gabrielle had committed the murder under Eyraud’s hypnotic influence. The world’s leading expert on hypnosis and crime, Jules Liégeois
(above)
, appeared as an expert witness on behalf of Gabrielle, arguing she could have become the plaything of her hypnotist lover. The prosecution put forward the theories of the prominent neurologist Jean-Martin Charcot
(below)
and his disciple Georges Gilles de la Tourette
(below)
, who contended that murder under hypnosis was impossible.

(
illustration credit 18
)

(
illustration credit 19
)

The Whiz Kid of Wall Street’s Investment Guide: How I Returned 34 Percent on My Portfolio, and You Can, Too
(with Matt Seto)

Historic Ships of San Francisco