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Anger Flares in France After Police Shoot and Kill Teenage Driver Protests and Sorrow After Fatal Police Traffic Encounter in France
(about 5 hours later)
The authorities in France have opened a criminal investigation after a 17-year-old driver was shot and killed by a police officer during a traffic stop near Paris, an episode that touched off a night of violence and fueled a longstanding debate on the use of deadly force by the country’s security forces. In a working class Paris suburb, two police officers confront a 17-year-old driver in a canary yellow Mercedes who was stopped in traffic. They shout at him, video footage shows, and one officer appears to have his gun drawn. The teenager is then fatally shot in broad daylight.
Initial news reports, based on what were described as anonymous police sources, had suggested that the driver plowed into two officers with his car on Tuesday during the stop in Nanterre, west of the capital. But an unconfirmed video of the shooting that appeared later led to accusations that the police had acted too aggressively, and prosecutors in Nanterre have opened a manslaughter investigation. The shooting — and the diverging accounts of what caused it — lead to spasms of violence on the streets and criticism of the officers by French officials normally loath to utter the words “police violence.”
The video, believed to have been filmed by a witness, spread quickly on social networks and was picked up by the French news media. It shows two helmeted police officers on the left side of a yellow car that is stopped on the street. The video was also obtained by The New York Times from a person who said she was close to the witness and who spoke on the condition of anonymity out of fear of repercussions for sharing the footage. The initial accounts of the events on Tuesday, provided to the French news media by anonymous police sources, claimed the driver had plowed into the officers, leading one to shoot. Then a video surfaced on Twitter.
The officers, both peering into the driver’s window, are heard shouting, although what they said to the victim, identified by the French authorities only as Nahel M., is unclear. One of the officers leans onto the windshield and points what appears to be a firearm at the driver, and as the car starts moving away, a loud bang is audible. That footage, believed to have been captured by a witness, showed the car was stopped as an officer on the driver’s side pointed a gun into the vehicle. When the car started to pull away, a blast was heard, and the car hurtled off, crashing into a nearby sidewalk.
That officer is in police custody, though he has not been charged. The family of the driver said that it was going to file a complaint accusing the police officer of murder. The teenage driver died an hour later.
Officers in France have faced accusations of brutality in the past, though the country’s authorities have been reluctant to use the term “police violence,” and police unions have rebuffed efforts to overhaul their tactics. The shooting fed into longstanding complaints about the French police, who have faced accusations of brutality, especially in Paris’s poorer suburbs, which are often home to people from immigrant backgrounds.
But on Wednesday, French leaders spoke in unusually forceful terms about the nature of the teenager’s death and expressed rare criticism of the police, a sign of how seriously the authorities were treating the developments. As the video spread, President Emmanuel Macron called the shooting “inexcusable.” Lawmakers held a moment of silence for the teenager, whose name was given only as Nahel M.
Prime Minister Élisabeth Borne told the lower house of Parliament that “the entire nation has been affected by this tragedy” after lawmakers held a minute of silence. Prime Minister Élisabeth Borne, while taking pains to note the commitment of officers and gendarmes “who are in the field every day,” offered stark criticism, saying the footage showed an operation “that clearly does not appear to comply with the rules of engagement of our police forces.”
“I know the commitment of our police officers and gendarmes who are in the field every day,” Ms. Borne said. But she said that video footage of the incident showed an operation “that clearly does not appear to comply with the rules of engagement of our police forces.” Even Gérald Darmanin, Mr. Macron’s tough-talking interior minister and a frequent defender of the police, was unusually critical, saying, “An act like the one that we saw, if the investigation confirms the videos that we have seen, is never justified.”
Emmanuel Macron, the French president, expressed “the nation’s sympathy” for the teenager’s family. “Justice must be done,” Mr. Macron told reporters. “Nothing justifies the death of a young person,” he added, calling it “inexplicable” and “inexcusable.” Local prosecutors in Nanterre, the western suburb of Paris where the shooting occurred, have opened a manslaughter investigation. The officer accused of shooting the teenager has not been publicly identified and has not been charged, but was in custody for questioning.
Some political leaders linked the shooting to a 2017 law that allows police officers to shoot at a moving vehicle if they deem it dangerous to their lives or to those of others and said that it was now clear the legislation should be repealed or at least revised. The law was passed after several police unions lobbied intensely for those powers, arguing that they were needed to better protect officers. Critics had said that it was too vague and might lead to unnecessary deaths. Alliance Police Nationale, a police union, reacted angrily to Mr. Macron’s comments and said in a statement that police officers, “like any citizen, have the right to the presumption of innocence,” and that it was “inconceivable” for Mr. Macron or other officials to “condemn our colleagues” before the end of the investigation.
So far, no official has disputed the content of the unconfirmed video, which spread widely on social media. The woman who said she had posted the original video on Twitter, told The New York Times that it had been given to her by the witness, with whom she is close. The woman asked that her name be withheld to avoid repercussions for sharing the footage.
After unrest erupted overnight Tuesday, Mr. Darmanin said that 2,000 police officers and gendarmes would be deployed across the Paris region on Wednesday evening to contain any more violence. Sporadic clashes were already underway in some French cities, including Toulouse.
During earlier violence, rioters threw rocks and fireworks at riot police, who responded with tear gas. Protesters burned about 40 cars. A City Hall annex in Mantes-la-Jolie, a town west of Paris, was destroyed. And more than 30 people were arrested, according to the French authorities.
Sofia Berkoukeche, 29, an occupational psychologist who has lived in Nanterre for nearly a decade, said on Wednesday that there was “a general frustration with police violence” and called the shooting “the last straw.”
“You can’t take such radical measures to impose order,” said Ms. Berkoukeche, who was working on the terrace of a cafe in the suburb. “It makes the police less credible.”
The shooting inflamed long-simmering anger in suburbs where relations between the police and residents are often freighted with mistrust. In one of the most infamous episodes in the Paris suburbs, two teenagers, Zyed Benna and Bouna Traoré, running from the police were electrocuted in 2005 after they hid in an electrical substation, provoking weeks of violent protests across the country.
It also revived debate about the French police’s use of deadly force, with some left-wing lawmakers saying it was yet more evidence that a 2017 law making it easier for officers to shoot at moving vehicles should be repealed, or at least revised.
The law says officers can shot if they deem the moving vehicle dangerous to their lives or to those of others. It was passed after several police unions argued that they were needed to better protect officers. Critics have said that it is too vague and might lead to unnecessary deaths. While acknowledging that police shootings at moving vehicles have increased since the law passed, the French authorities have said that the rise is mostly because more drivers are refusing to stop.
Laurent Nuñez, the Paris police prefect, told the French TV channel CNews that the two officers had tried to stop the car on Tuesday because the driver had committed several traffic violations and had not complied with orders to stop, before getting stuck in traffic.
“Why is it that, in our republic, a failure to comply can be punishable by a bullet in the chest or head?” Sabrina Sebaihi, a lawmaker representing the district where the teenager was killed, said in Parliament on Tuesday.“Why is it that, in our republic, a failure to comply can be punishable by a bullet in the chest or head?” Sabrina Sebaihi, a lawmaker representing the district where the teenager was killed, said in Parliament on Tuesday.
While acknowledging that police shootings at moving vehicles have increased since the law passed, the French authorities say that the rise is mostly because more drivers are refusing to stop. Mr. Darmanin said the officer involved in the shooting would be punished if warranted. Both officers, who are in their late 30s and early 40s, are experienced members of the traffic police and have no record of misconduct, Mr. Darmanin added.
The shooting on Tuesday inflamed long-simmering anger in suburbs where relations between the police and residents are often fraught with mistrust. In one of the most infamous incidents in the Paris suburbs, in 2005, two teenagers, Zyed Benna and Bouna Traoré, were electrocuted after they hid in an electrical substation while running from the police, provoking weeks of violent protests around the country. The prosecutor’s office in Nanterre said that the shooting had occurred near Place Nelson Mandela, a square not far from La Défense, a business district northwest of Paris. Two people were in the vehicle, a Mercedes-AMG, in addition to the driver, the office said: One was released after questioning; the other was still being sought after fleeing the scene.
The rage over Nahel M.’s death quickly spilled into unrest, especially in the Hauts-de-Seine area, which includes Nanterre. More than 30 people were arrested overnight, according to the French authorities, after protesters threw rocks and fireworks at riot police, who responded with tear gas. Yassine Bouzrou, a lawyer for Nahel M.’s relatives, said that they were planning to file a complaint accusing the officer of murder. The family would also file suit accusing the other officer of complicity, the lawyer said.
Protesters also burned some 40 cars and set fire to construction shacks and some buildings. A City Hall annex in Mantes-la-Jolie, a town further west of Paris, was destroyed. Assa Traoré, an activist whose half brother, Adama Traoré, died of asphyxiation while in custody in 2016 after fleeing a police identification check, said that the video from Tuesday had been key in quickly spurring widespread protests. Many similar encounters are not caught on camera, she noted.
Gérald Darmanin, the French interior minister, said that 2,000 police officers and gendarmes would be deployed across France on Wednesday evening to contain any violence. “He is a symbol of all the other ones that we don’t see,” Ms. Traoré said of Nahel M.
Sofia Berkoukeche, 29, an occupational psychologist who has lived in Nanterre for nearly a decade, said on Wednesday that there was “a general frustration with police violence.” She called the shooting “the last straw.” Nanterre, with a population of nearly 100,000, is home to one of the Paris region’s largest universities. It is a more working-class area than neighboring cities, though not nearly as impoverished as some of the other suburbs that ring Paris.
“You can’t take such radical measures to impose order,” Ms. Berkoukeche said. “It makes the police less credible.” Patrick Jarry, the mayor of Nanterre, said at a news conference on Wednesday that the suburb had experienced “one of the worst days of its history.”
Mr. Darmanin said that the police officer would be punished if warranted. “An act like the one that we saw, if the investigation confirms the videos that we have seen, is never justified,” he said. The two officers are experienced members of the traffic police in their late 30s and early 40s, and had no record of misconduct, Mr. Darmanin added. “Let us stop this destructive spiral,” Mr. Jarry said. “We want justice for Nahel; we will obtain it through peaceful mobilization.”
The prosecutor’s office in Nanterre said in a statement that the shooting occurred on Tuesday morning near Place Nelson Mandela, a square in Nanterre not far from La Défense, a business district northwest of Paris. A march in the teenager’s name is scheduled for Thursday.
Two people were in the vehicle, a Mercedes AMG, in addition to the driver, the prosecutor’s office said: One of them was released after questioning; the other was still being sought after fleeing the scene. Residents of Nanterre said they were both shocked and unsurprised by the shooting.
Laurent Nuñez, the Paris police prefect, told the French TV channel CNews on Wednesday that the two officers had tried to stop the car because the driver had committed several traffic violations and had refused to stop a first time, before getting stuck in traffic. That is when the two police officers were able to approach the vehicle, he said. Mathilde Emery, a 17-year-old high school student who was on a park bench, said she had known Nahel and described him as an easygoing classmate who liked to joke around.
Nahel M. died an hour after being shot, the prosecutor’s office said. Initial tests did not indicate that the police officer who fired the shot had been under the influence of any drug or alcohol, the prosecutor’s office added. “We already have a bad perception of the police,” she said. “It’s just disappointing.”
Yassine Bouzrou, a lawyer for Nahel M.’s family, said that in addition to the complaint against the police officer who fired the shot, the family would also file a suit accusing the other officer of complicity and another legal action accusing the officers of lying about the incident in their initial statements. Actors, artists and athletes also noted the shooting with sadness.
Deadly firearm deaths are uncommon in France, and the shooting on Tuesday quickly captured the nation’s attention, including that of famous actors, artists and athletes. The actor Omar Sy and the soccer player Kylian Mbappé both expressed support for Nahel M.’s family on social media.
The actor Omar Sy and the soccer player Kylian Mbappé both expressed support for Nahel M.’s family on social media. (Some authorities had earlier spelled the name as Naël.) Writing on Twitter, Mr. Mbappé said, “My France hurts.”
“My France hurts,” Mr. Mbappé wrote on Twitter. Juliette Guéron-Gabrielle contributed reporting from Nanterre, France, and Catherine Porter from Paris.
Nanterre, with a population of nearly 100,000, is home to one of the Paris region’s largest universities. It is a more working-class area than neighboring cities in the Hauts-de-Seine, though not nearly as impoverished as some of the other suburbs that ring Paris.
Patrick Jarry, the mayor of Nanterre, said at a news conference on Wednesday that the city had experienced “one of the worst days of its history.”
“Let us stop this destructive spiral,” Mr. Jarry said. “We want justice for Nahel, we will obtain it through peaceful mobilization.”
The town was mostly calm on Wednesday, and residents were both shocked and unsurprised by the police shooting.
Mathilde Emery, a 17-year-old high school student who was eating lunch on a park bench in Nanterre on Wednesday, said that she knew Nahel and described him as a funny and easygoing classmate who liked to joke around.
“We already have a bad perception of the police,” Ms. Emery said. “It’s just disappointing.”
Juliette Guéron-Gabrielle contributed reporting from Nanterre, France.