In the News: Éliane Houlette back in turmoil

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By: Norbert Navarro

Publicity

After the scandal of "  pressures  " that she says she suffered during the investigation into François Fillon, we learn that the now former prosecutor of the National Financial Prosecutor's Office was herself the subject of an investigation for alleged crimes of "  trading in influence  ”and“  illegal taking of interest  ”.

The Mediapart site reveals it. Wiretapping operated by the Marseille gendarmerie as part of an investigation into alleged fictitious jobs in the entourage of the mayor of Marseille Jean-Claude Gaudin, "  seriously question  " this magistrate who has just retired.

According to Mediapart, "  two very embarrassing summary reports  " from the Research Section of the Marseille Gendarmerie were the cause, in June 2019, of a seizure of the Chancellery by the General Prosecutor's Office of Paris "  with a view to possible disciplinary proceedings, then, a month later, an investigation by the same public prosecutor's office in favor of the opening of a criminal investigation against Éliane Houlette for "trading in influence", "illegal taking of interests" and "breach of secrecy" ".

This online newspaper reports "  leaks  " to the National Financial Prosecutor's Office and "  possible secret arrangements with the prosecutor  " in order to obstruct the course of justice in a case targeting the first circle of the mayor of Marseille.

Referring to a "  possible Houlette scandal  ", Mediapart therefore reveals the content of certain intercepts operated by the gendarmes and in which there is talk of an appointment between a lawyer close to the chief of staff of Jean-Claude Gaudin and a certain "  friend  " who turns out to be a certain "Éliane", but also of a "  letter  " which had to be given to her before she left office at the head of the PNF, Mediapart referring to "  the shadow of a pact to protect Gaudin  " . A preliminary investigation having been opened last September, it was finally entrusted to the parquet floor of Nanterre, near Paris. 

This case, in any case, further disturbs the image of justice :

And not just a little, because even if it is a question of justice in France, let us immediately emphasize that beyond the sole powers of justice, the question of the independence of judges vis-à-vis political power arises elsewhere in the world, both for national judicial systems and for international justice.

Unrelated to the Marseille case, but rather to the one we were already talking about here yesterday - that of the wiretapping of renowned lawyers in the so-called “  wiretapping of Nicolas Sarkozy, alias Paul Bismuth  ” case - the Minister of Justice, Nicole Belloubet, yesterday ordered a report to the public prosecutor's office on the nature of the investigations of the National Financial Prosecutor's Office.

And this morning, in the daily Le Parisien , the lawyer Éric Dupond-Moretti called for "  the general assembly of justice  ". For this tenor of the Paris bar too, “  the major problem is the lack of separation between the prosecution and the judge. Today, there is between the two the thickness of a sheet of cigarette paper  ”, formulated in this daily Éric Dupond-Moretti, according to whom the current system allows“  collusion  ”. According to this illustrious black dress, "  we have switched to the Republic of judges  ", he lumberjack in Le Parisien .

In France again, motorists do not want to hear about the limitation to 110 km / h of the maximum speed allowed on the highway :

Launched by the Citizens' Convention, the idea of ​​going from 130 to 110 km / h speed on the motorway was rejected by seven out of ten French people.

According to an Elabe poll for Le Parisien , three out of four French people are in favor of banning advertising for the most polluting cars, such as "  for alcohol or cigarettes  ", notes Le Parisien , and 65% say yes to "  stop pubs for air travel  . "

In Glasgow, Scotland, the knife attack yesterday, which may have left two dead and six injured, including a police officer. The suspect responsible for this new attack was shot by the police :

"  After the heart of England, Scotland,  " sighs Le Figaro , in reference to a similar attack in Reading last week. Scottish police said the attack was " not considered terrorism  " for the time  being but that the investigation was continuing, the daily said, noting that in recent months "  two attacks have been carried out London by Islamists who had already been convicted of terrorist offenses  ”.

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