This is the meeting place for fans of Star Wars: May the fourth.
May 4, in French.
And on this occasion, the criminal lawyer Antoine Vey plunged back into the mock trial of 2015 where he had defended Darth Vader with a certain… Eric Dupond-Moretti!
He recounts this event at the microphone of Europe 1 on Tuesday.
INTERVIEW
Every May 4th, it's an event for Star Wars fans. This date, in English "may the fourth", coincides with the flagship replica of the saga "May the force be with you", translate "may the force be with you". It imposed itself naturally as an unofficial World Star Wars Day. Six years ago, a certain ... Eric Dupond-Moretti defended Darth Vader during a true-false trial at the Grand Rex, in Paris. His former disciple then partner, Maître Antoine Vey, then at his side, was at the microphone of Europe 1, Tuesday morning, to deliver some confidences on the hearing.
When several students at the time proposed to Antoine Vey to come and defend Darth Vader during a fictitious trial, he rushed forward and took two lawyers with him.
Patrice Spinosi and his mentor, Éric Dupond-Moretti.
At the moment of entering the scene, the current Minister of Justice slips to Antoine Vey "But by the way, who is Darth Vader?".
The criminal lawyer quipped at the microphone of Europe 1: "He was totally imbued with the defense of the one he was going to support ten minutes later!".
"Hordes of people with lightsabers"
"It's a really super nice memory," whispered Antoine Vey.
And the most "fun", according to him, will undoubtedly remain to have "dragged" his two older colleagues with him.
"They were completely flabbergasted by the power of the force of this audience which was totally delirious," he recalls.
At the bar, the three lawyers intend to convey important messages in this relaxed atmosphere.
"I remember that the National Front had just won the first rounds of an election. We had embroidered around this new political phenomenon at the time," says Antoine Vey.
It is also a way of being a teacher.
For the criminal lawyer, even a mock trial can expose all the "strings of justice".
Through the defense of Darth Vader, the three lawyers finally demonstrated one of the fundamental aspects of French law: "Everyone deserves to be defended".
>> Find the morning show of the day in replay and podcast here
"We have seen hordes of people arriving with lightsabers," says the criminal lawyer who has now taken over the office of the Minister of Justice. The trial was organized by a student association at the Grand Rex in Paris for the release of the new Star Wars films. "At the time, it was something quite incredible to experience. We had the feeling that it was all becoming real," said Antoine Vey. At the end of this true-false trial, Darth Vader, who still wishes to destroy the galaxy in the fictional universe, was acquitted.