Should the families of young delinquents be deprived of social assistance?
The question is not new and the debate had stirred the benches of the National Assembly just a few days ago, during a game between Éric Dupond-Moretti and Marine Le Pen.
"Punishment for kids doesn't work," preached the Keeper of the Seals.
We can do whatever we want.
"
Monday, December 14, it is at the level of the town hall of Valence that the debate arose again, says France Bleu.
During the city council, the mayor LR Nicolas Daragon and his majority voted to abolish social assistance for the families of "young delinquents who have been sentenced or who have been the subject of a call to order from the rights council. and the duties of families, explains the city councilor of Valence.
And whose proposed educational measures were refused.
The municipality is also considering ordering the eviction of the families thus put on notice.
The measure was decided in response to many acts of degradation that were committed during All Saints' Day, lasting several nights.
The deliberation of the city council also cites the case of several damaged buses in February or even firefighters taken to task.
"I've been mayor for seven years and I've seen people who can't take it anymore," continues Nicolas Daragon.
Food and transport aid concerned
Very concretely, the services that the municipality arrogates to itself the right to abolish concern municipal aid for sport and culture in particular, and optional aid from the CCAS (Center communal d 'actions sociales) which aims to contribute to food, accommodation and transport for families in precarious situations.
The mayor, who has been around the media since Monday, defends his measure by the concept of civil and criminal liability of parents.
He thus intends to hit them in the wallet.
"There will be no automaticity", he still wishes to recall.
The deliberation, voted by the 42 elected members of the majority, is contested by members of the opposition.
"The mayor announced in November his desire to have this measure voted," explains Florent Méjean, elected socialist opposition.
I am not sure that this is the right method… We are all the same very close to the ideas of the extreme right.
"He notes that these sanctions will mainly affect families in precarious situations, living for the most part in neighborhoods" which the municipality has not taken care of, with abandoned buildings.
"
Legal doubts?
This is not the first time that a town hall has tried this kind of initiative.
In May 2018, the city of Rillieux-la-Pape, in the suburbs of Lyon, voted for a deliberation to this effect for crimes committed in the town by minors.
Since then, according to France 3, around thirty young people have been summoned by the municipal teams.
Three families saw aid cut off for a year, after refusing to be supported.
Beyond these precedents, lawyers are frankly questioning the legality of the measure.
"This measure amounts in a way to modifying the criteria for the allocation of this aid," explains Louis Le Foyer de Costil, lawyer specializing in public law.
But they must remain linked to the social benefit.
There, I do not see the link.
The lawyer detects another potential flaw: the principle of individualization of the sentence.
“If we were to consider the removal of benefits as a sanction, we would be in a situation in which parents would be sanctioned for acts they did not commit.
"
Political Newsletter
Our analyzes and indiscretions on power
Subscribe to the newsletterAll newsletters
Arguments swept aside by Nicolas Daragon.
“We are based on the CAF aid model, the allocation of which also depends on students' attendance at school.
When you have 11-year-olds shooting mortar fireworks in the middle of the night, I blame the parents first.
"
To defend his measure, the mayor of Valence ensures that his priority remains the support of young people in difficulty, while 1,500 of them are currently supported by the specialized prevention service.
He ensures that these measures will only intervene as a last resort, in the case of families who would be recalcitrant.
"Yes, food aid is concerned, but families will not be deprived of all their social benefits," he said.
We are only talking about optional aid.
This will not prevent them from going to the Restos du cœur or the Red Cross.
Simply, it will no longer be the responsibility of the CCAS.
"
