France: the extension of the experimentation of the criminal courts arouses controversy

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Already affected by chronic delays, French courts and tribunals have seen cases accumulate since mid-December, consequence of strikes by transport and lawyers linked to the pension reform then by the two months of reduced activity in the emergency room during containment. To cope with this bottleneck, the National Assembly voted on the night of Thursday to Friday May 15 at first reading a series of measures and in particular the extension of the experimentation of criminal courts without popular jury. A controversial measure.

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Already affected by chronic delays, French courts and tribunals have seen cases accumulate since mid-December, consequence of strikes by transport and lawyers linked to the pension reform then by the two months of reduced activity in the emergency room during containment. To cope with this bottleneck, the National Assembly voted on the night of Thursday to Friday May 15 at first reading a series of measures and in particular the extension of the experimentation of criminal courts without popular jury. A controversial measure.

Halfway between the criminal court, which examines crimes, and the assize court which judges crimes, the criminal court already tested in 9 departments is competent for crimes punishable by 15 to 20 years in prison. But unlike the assizes and their popular jury, the criminal court is only composed of professional magistrates.

Several opposition deputies denounced a priority given to the quantity of cases processed, to the detriment of the quality of the legal debate. The assessment is " not final since the experiment will be completed in 2022 ", but it is " rather satisfactory ", according to the Minister of Justice Nicole Belloubet. These criminal courts “ really work with respect for the rights of the parties, effectively. They impose sentences that are high but judge more quickly, ”she said.

Strong criticism

The government amendment thus provoked heated debates in the Assembly. "  It is the increase in an experiment on which we have no return,  " denounced deputy Les Républicains Antoine Savignat.

“ It is the regression of justice in the name of the crisis. This establishes a gradation in crimes between those who would have the right to jurors and others not, "also lambasted Caroline Fiat, of rebellious France.

A position that is not shared either by many justice professionals, magistrates and lawyers. “ Before lay jurors, we take the time to present all the elements and the testimonies. Renouncing the popular jury therefore marks a break with fundamental principles such as the judgment by his peers, the orality of the debates and the uniqueness of the trial ”, estimates Catherine Feral-Schuhl, president of the National Council of Bars.

"We have expressed our disagreement with these criminal courts which are either super correctional courts or sub-courtyards. Rape is therefore no longer criminalized." @feral_schuhl

She also denounces a kind of a priori prioritization of crimes according to the court in which they pass: " For example, rape would be less important than killing since we are going to go to the criminal court for rape, but before the court of seated for a murder, whereas rape like murder is a crime, ”points out the lawyer. The amendment finally voted to extend the experiment to 30 departments.

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