The Court of Cassation rules on Wednesday March 23 on the appeal of two young people, found guilty of having deliberately attempted to kill police officers in Viry-Châtillon (Essonne) in 2016, a case whose investigation is disputed and has since been the subject of of investigation.
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The highest court of the judiciary examined on February 16 an appeal filed by two young men, sentenced on appeal to 18 years in prison for attempted murder of police officers.
On Wednesday, the Court of Cassation will say if it rejects these appeals, which would make their convictions final or if it cancels the verdict of the Assize Court, paving the way for a new trial.
In April 2021, after a six-week appeal trial behind closed doors, the Paris Juvenile Assize Court found five of the thirteen defendants guilty of attempted murder of police officers.
This verdict, perceived as too lenient by the civil parties, was notably motivated by "
the absence of sufficient evidence
" for eight defendants.
The court was judging the facts of October 8, 2016: 16 people had attacked, some with Molotov cocktails, two police cars parked near the Grande Borne district, a vast social housing estate considered one of the most sensitive in 'Ile-de-France.
The assailants being masked, it was impossible to recognize them and the investigation was based on many testimonies, some of which contradicted each other.
One of the two appeals disputes in particular the fact that the court did not hear an anonymous witness whose statements during the investigation had an essential role in the conviction of one of the defendants, according to a source familiar with the case.
However, there is nothing to indicate that the defense was able to question this witness during the investigation.
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At the hearing on February 16, the Advocate General advocated dismissing the appeals.
Beyond this last resort, the defense of the accused opened another front, attacking the way in which the investigation itself was carried out in 2016 by the police officers of the departmental security of Essonne.
Conditions of police custody
In July, a judicial investigation against X for "
forgery in public writing
", "
fraud in judgment
" and "
willful violence
", all by "
person depositary of public authority
" was opened in Créteil, after several complaints.
Since then, an expertise has been underway: it aims to transcribe and analyze the recordings of police custody in order to reveal the precise conditions, according to another source familiar with the matter.
An “
indispensable work
”, long and “
inevitable preliminary
” to any other act of investigation, assures the prosecution, considering that this instruction follows “
a normal course
”.
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But, for the lawyer of one of the young people, Me Sarah Mauger-Poliak, "
it is disheartening to note that this investigation is at a standstill, the magistrate initially in charge of the file has left and the new magistrate rejects all requests of deeds filed
”.
According to his joint complaint with two other lawyers, the investigators drafted the minutes by modifying the meaning of the statements, evading protests of innocence, a large number of detailed explanations and without recording requests for verification in favor of his client, acquitted on appeal.
Also according to this complaint, the key witness of the investigation did not "
spontaneously
" produce a "
list of participants in the attack
", as assured by the investigators.
Frédérick Petipermon, lawyer for one of the defendants sentenced to 18 years who appealed to the Court of Cassation, also attacked this investigation.
“
The police officers in charge of the investigation did not skimp on the means
”, acknowledged the lawyer.
“
But what is this condemnation worth if we have constructed evidence and if the instruction [sur les methodspolice NDLR] disapproves of the investigation?
asks the lawyer.
A police report dated April 16, 2018 also undermined the investigation by saying that it is "
difficult to determine the actions and individual responsibilities of individuals
".
The police lawyer Jérôme Andrei did not wish to comment on the instruction.
"
We cannot conduct hours of interrogation without making reformulations and shortcuts, this does not mean that we make fakes
, ”he assured in July.
