Attack in Paris: what is the injunction for care?

Yasmina Kattou with AFP / Photo credits: Dimitar DILKOFF / AFP 08:43, 05 December 2023

The police custody of French-Iranian Armand Rajabpour-Miyandoab continues, three days after the fatal knife attack in Paris near the Eiffel Tower, which put the executive under pressure in the face of a high jihadist threat. The 26-year-old, known to the police for his radical Islamism and psychiatric disorders, said he had acted in "reaction to the persecution of Muslims around the world" and appeared in front of the police "very cold", "clinical" and "disembodied", according to a source close to the investigation.

He was arrested after the attack that killed a 23-year-old German-Filipino tourist and injured two others on Saturday night near the Bir-Hakeim bridge (26th arrondissement) spanning the Seine, a few months before the Summer Olympics in the capital (July 11-August <>).

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Consultations with the psychiatrist

Gérald Darmanin demanded on Sunday that the authorities "be able to ask for an injunction of care" for a radicalized person being treated for psychiatric disorders in order to prevent acts like that of the terrorist of the Bir-Hakeim bridge. "What needs to be changed is the fact that the public authorities, the prefect, the police can ask for and demand care orders. Today, this is not the case," the interior minister said. How does a care order work?

When a care order is issued, there are first consultations with the psychiatrist several times a month, depending on the patient. Sometimes, drug treatment is prescribed. In this case, there are two ways to make sure that the person is taking their therapy. During a session, the psychiatrist administers an extended-release drug by injection, the effect of which lasts about a month. If it is a pill treatment, blood tests can be taken to check.

Follow-up of the patient

To organize the follow-up of the patient: a coordinating physician is appointed. It provides the link between the psychiatrist and the judicial authority, who are never in direct contact. For example, if one day the patient misses one of his appointments, the psychiatrist notifies the coordinating physician, who in turn notifies the magistrate. Medical confidentiality is always preserved. If the care order is not complied with, it is a crime and the patient risks being incarcerated.