A French police officer will face trial over the killing of a teen that set off nationwide riots
PARIS — A French police officer will face trial subsequent 12 months on expenses of voluntary murder over the killing of a 17-year-old of North African descent, a dying that set off nationwide riots.
The prosecutor’s workplace within the Paris suburb of Nanterre, the place sufferer Nahel Merzouk grew up and was killed in 2023, mentioned in a press release that magistrates determined Tuesday to ship the police officer to trial after a two-year investigation.
The officer, recognized in authorized paperwork solely as Florian M., was initially detained however launched a number of months later pending additional investigation. He’s anticipated to face trial within the third quarter of 2026, the prosecutor’s workplace mentioned.
Merzouk’s household and lawyer didn’t instantly reply to requests for touch upon the announcement.
{The teenager} was shot throughout a site visitors cease in Nanterre. Video confirmed two officers on the window of the Mercedes the youth was driving, one together with his gun pointed at Merzouk. Because the automotive pulled ahead, the officer fired as soon as.
After the killing, Nanterre prosecutor Pascal Prache mentioned his preliminary investigation led him to conclude that the officer’s use of his weapon was not legally justified.
Protests over his killing unfold round France and a few turned violent, with shops looted and public buildings torched. Hundreds of individuals have been arrested as the federal government ratcheted up its regulation enforcement response to quell the unrest, and a whole bunch of individuals have been injured. In associated protests within the abroad territory of French Guiana in South America, a 54-year-old died after being hit by a stray bullet.
The response to the killing was a potent reminder of the persistent poverty, discrimination, unemployment and different lack of alternative in neighborhoods round France the place many residents hint their roots to former French colonies.