Patrick Henry was born on March 31, 1953, in Troyes, France. There is limited public information on his early childhood or upbringing, and no detailed history of abuse, trauma, or early criminal activity that would foreshadow his later crime. By his early twenties, Henry was living in France with no notable career or purpose, and he didn’t stand out as a particularly violent or disturbed individual. However, like many criminals who commit their first violent crime without warning, Henry would thrust himself into the national spotlight through a chilling act that shocked the country.

At 22 years old, Henry had no known violent record, and many believed he was just an ordinary young man. But beneath the surface, there was a desperate need for money and a willingness to cross moral lines to get it — a combination that would lead to one of France’s most infamous crimes. The murder he committed not only destroyed a family but also ignited a national debate that would impact France’s criminal justice system forever.

In January 1976, France was rocked by the kidnapping and murder of 8-year-old Philippe Bertrand, the son of a local prison guard. The young boy was abducted by Patrick Henry in the city of Troyes. At the time, Henry demanded a ransom from the boy’s family — reportedly 1 million francs — and attempted to make it seem like Philippe was still alive.

However, investigations soon revealed the gruesome truth: Henry had suffocated the child shortly after the abduction. The exact date of the murder is not widely reported, but it occurred in the early days of January 1976. After a police investigation, Henry was arrested not long after the crime. Authorities discovered the boy’s body hidden under a blanket in Henry's home.

His trial began on January 18, 1977, and immediately became a national sensation — not only because of the brutal nature of the crime, but also because it sparked a public war over the death penalty in France. Patrick Henry was defended by two lawyers: Robert Bocquillon and Robert Badinter, a vocal opponent of capital punishment.

Badinter, who later became France’s Minister of Justice, used the trial to push his abolitionist agenda. Despite public outrage and the horrific nature of the crime, Badinter convinced the jury not to sentence Henry to death, arguing that even the most despicable criminals deserve the chance for redemption. Instead, Henry was sentenced to life imprisonment.

The outcome of the trial marked a turning point in French legal history. In many ways, the Patrick Henry case laid the groundwork for the abolition of the death penalty in France, which officially happened in 1981 under President François Mitterrand, with Robert Badinter playing a key role.

Henry served decades in prison. In 2001, after serving 25 years, he was granted parole. But just two years later, in 2003, he was caught attempting to smuggle drugs into France and was sent back to prison. He applied for parole multiple times but was consistently denied due to the breach of trust.

It wasn’t until September 15, 2017, that Henry was finally released again — this time, on medical grounds, as he was suffering from terminal lung cancer. He died less than three months later, on December 3, 2017, in a hospital in Lille, at the age of 64.