Carla Bruni appeared completely different, far from her usual seductive image, as she stood by her husband, Nicolas Sarkozy, at the Paris Court of Appeal on Tuesday. The former model had chosen a simple look, minimal makeup, a black suit and white sneakers, and as she entered the Palace of Justice she was accompanied by police forces. In her hands, she carried only sunglasses and a mobile phone. According to Daily Mail reports, her appearance was noticeably different from that of last October, when she accompanied Sarkozy during his transfer to La Santé prison. The former French president was sentenced last year to five years in prison for criminal conspiracy, in connection with a suspected scheme to finance his election campaign by the regime of Muammar Gaddafi. With this ruling, he became the first former head of state of the European Union and the first post-war French leader to end up in prison. After spending about 20 days in a Paris prison, which he described as "exhausting" and "terrible," Sarkozy was released in November, pending his appeal trial. Meanwhile, he has also published a book about his prison experience.