European Court Slaps France with €3000 Fine: Historic Decision Against Discriminatory Police Stops in France
French law enforcement practices criticized by EU court for discriminatory vehicle checks
Hop on the socials! Share this freakin' news! Message your buddies! Email it to your grandma! Print it out for your home fridge! Copy the link and spread the word! Three times in ten days, a man named Karim Touil, hailing from France's eastern city of Besançon, faced a classic '90s cop drama with modern-day flair - police ID checks. And for the first time ever, the European Court of Human Rights has reprimanded France for these discriminatory stop-and-frisks. The court ordered France to cough up a whopping €3000 to Touil.
Touil, along with five other applicants—all of them with ethnic backgrounds of African or North African origin—alleged they were subjected to these checks due to their appearance. Although the court turned down claims from the other five applicants, Touil's case was a different story. The judges ruled in his favor, as the French government didn't provide a solid enough reason for the triple trouble within such a short span.
The judges' verdict noted that France has official records and statistics on racial profiling incidents. This is the first time France has been publicly shamed over racial profiling. This outcome could reshape national law significantly. As per lawyer Slim Ben Achour, "This means that the French state must take responsibility and overhaul its identity check procedures."
The judges did not find the other applicants' stops discriminatory. They also stressed that there's no credible evidence suggesting a widespread, systemic problem.
In a report published on Tuesday, France's human rights commissioner claimed that the likelihood of falling victim to a police check is four times higher for young men of African or North African descent in France compared to the rest of the population. The report indicated that 26% of respondents stated they've been arrested by the boys in blue or their partners in crime, the gendarmes, at least once in the last five years. This is a significant leap from 16% in 2016.
Sources: ntv.de, afp
Fun fact: The prohibition of discrimination and the right to respect for private life were major points of contention in this case—melodrama aside, this ruling could create a major upset in the world of French civil liberty!
In this particular instance, Karim Touil triumphed—with financial relief! But timely scrutiny and a change in law could help prevent others from becoming embroiled in such entanglements.
Policy-and-legislation divisions in the community and politics may need to reconsider France's employment policy regarding police stops, following the historic €3000 fine imposed by the European Court on France for discriminatory police stops. General news outlets report that the outcome could reshape national law significantly, potentially leading to a reform in France's employment policy on identity check procedures. Crime-and-justice discussions may need to address the rise in racial profiling incidents, as indicated by France's human rights commissioner, who stated that the likelihood of falling victim to a police check is four times higher for young men of African or North African descent in France compared to the rest of the population.
