Europe 1 with AFP 4 p.m., January 5, 2023

After three days of civil hearing, the special assize court of Paris announced that it will announce its decision on May 26, on the admissibility of some 2,600 constitutions of civil parties to the trial of the Nice attack.

This hearing will make it possible to recognize, or not, the status of victim.

The special assize court of Paris will announce on May 26 its decision on the admissibility of some 2,600 constitutions of civil parties to the trial of the Nice attack, a sesame for the recognition of the status of victim.

The court presided over by Laurent Raviot put a final end on Thursday, after three days of civil hearing, to a trial which had started on September 5.

The civil hearing opened on Tuesday

"The hearing is closed", announced shortly before 2 p.m. Laurent Raviot after taking care to wish "good luck" to the two convicts present at the hearing, Endri Elezi and Mohamed Ghraieb.

“Thank you all and good continuation”, he concluded, addressing all the parties present. 

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Since Tuesday, around thirty civil party lawyers have taken turns at the bar to ask the court to validate their clients' civil party applications.

One of the challenges is to pave the way for possible compensation for the damage suffered.

Recognition of civil party status is also highly symbolic for many people, traumatized by the attack and who want to be recognized as victims.

The National Anti-Terrorist Prosecutor's Office (Pnat) disputes the admissibility of 224 civil parties and requests details or supporting documents concerning 369 others.

Right to be recognized as "victims"

Even if it has widened the zone of exposure to danger, the Pnat continues to dispute the status of victims to people who were on the beach or in the streets adjacent to the Promenade des Anglais or to rescuers - firefighters and police in particular - which occurred after the immobilization of the truck.

In the event of inadmissibility of their civil action, these people will not be able to claim to benefit from any reparations before the Jurisdiction for compensation of victims of acts of terrorism.

Above all, many lawyers have warned, they would be deprived of the right to be recognized as "victims" even though many of them have suffered and are still suffering from what they felt on July 14, 2016.

That evening, when 25,000 people were gathered on the Promenade des Anglais, the Tunisian Mohamed Lahouaiej Bouhlel drove deliberately and at high speed into the crowd with a 19-tonne truck.

He killed 86 people, injured more than 400 and traumatized several thousand, before being shot dead by the police.