A unjustified dissemination grenade shot had reached a man, Place de la République, in Paris, during a demonstration against the “Labor” law, in 2016.
By Henri Seckel
Alexandre Mathieu is large, and wears a gray suit. Laurent Théron is small, and he misses an eye, the right. The two men face each other, Monday, December 12, in the imposing Voltaire room of the Paris courthouse, six years after their first meeting, on September 15, 2016. That day, place de la République, Alexandre Mathieu wore his CRS hold, and Laurent Théron still had his two eyes.
Two years before the birth of the “yellow vests” movement, it was against the “labor” law of Minister Myriam El Khomri that part of the country demonstrated. The Parisian parade had been enamelled with violence and the Place de la République, the end of the demonstration, had been the scene of clashes which had culminated with the conflagration of a CRS, reached by a Molotov cocktail. The situation calmed down at the end of the afternoon.
Around 4:50 p.m., Mr. Théron, demonstrating in his fifty years, was preparing to leave the place when a grip grenade (GMD), launched from a line of CRS located 15 meters more Far, exploded near him. Laurent Théron collapsed on the ground. He had received one of the 18 rubber pebbles of 9.3 grams propelled at very high speed by the GMD at the time of his explosion – this weapon has since been replaced, in the arsenal of order of order, By a less dangerous model.
On the images captured that day by amateur videographers and broadcast at the audience on Monday, we see the CRS line in the middle of the place, we see the trajectory of the grenade, we even see the moment when She explodes in the air, projecting her small rubber pebbles. We do not see the moment of the impact with the face of Mr. Théron, but we hear this one how to scream “ouch, my eye, fucking shit!”, A look at the hotel at the hotel -Dieu will not save. So here is the CRS Alexandre Mathieu before the Assizes – a rarity for a member of the police – for “voluntary violence having led to mutilation or permanent infirmity by person depositary of the public authority”. The maximum penalty incurred is fifteen years.
“I ask you forgiveness”
The issue of the trial is not whether it was the 54-year-old accused who launched the grenade: he had pointed out at the start of the investigation at IGPN, Police police, who was looking for a left-handed CRS having launched a GMD that day. During his first words on Monday – he was not yet asked about the facts, only about his career -, Mr. Mathieu said he was “deeply, sincerely sorry for the very serious injury” which he inflicted on Laurent Théron , to which he turned: “I am ashamed of what happened, I ask you forgiveness.”
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