Police beat black man as opposition to filming ban grows
A black man beaten up by several French police officers said he is seeking justice after the publication of videos showing officers repeatedly punching him, using a truncheon and tear gas against him for no apparent reason.
French I nterior Minister Gerald Darmanin ordered the officers involved in the case suspended.
The incident came as President Emmanuel Macron’s government is pushing a new bill that restricts the ability to film police, which has prompted protests from civil liberties groups and journalists concerned that it would allow police brutality to go undiscovered and unpunished.
Videos first published yesterday by French news website Loopsider show the violent arrest of a music producer, Michel Zecler, in t he 17th arrondissement or district of the French capital last Sunday.
The video images obtained by the Associated Press, both from a security camera inside the studio and filmed by neighbours outside, show three officers following Zecler inside his music studio, where they can be seen repeatedly punching him and beating him with a truncheon.
Zecler said he feels “good” now that “the truth is out”: “I want to understand why I have been assaulted by people who were wearing a police uniform. I want justice actually, because I believe in the justice of my country.”
Zecler said that the officers hurled repeated insults at him, including a very strong racist epithet. He added that he still does not understand why officers decided to arrest him. He suffered injuries to his head, forearms and legs.
His lawyer, Hafida El Ali, said: “He asked them what they wanted, if they wanted to check his identity . . . They didn’t stop beating him, the video of the violence [inside the studio] lasts for 12 minutes.”
At some point the officers called in reinforcements and went outside. They then threw a tear gas grenade into the studio to get those inside to come out, according El Ali.
El Ali said that nine others who were recording music in the studio basement were also beaten.
“Outside they are still beaten up and thrown to the ground and that’s the moment when a police officer sees they are being filmed,” she said. Then the violence stops.
Zecler’s lawyer stressed the value of the videos in her client’s case.
“These videos are essential because initially my client was being detained . . . for violence against people with public authority,” El Ali said. “This is very serious. The reality is that if we didn’t have these videos maybe my client would be in prison.”
It’s the second such police brutality investigation in Paris this week prompted by video footage. The government ordered an internal police investigation on Wednesday after police officers were filmed tossing migrants out of tents and intentionally tripping one while evacuating a protest camp.
That same day, France’s lower house of parliament approved a draft law meant to strengthen local police and provide greater protection to all officers. It notably makes it a crime to publish images of officers with intent to cause them harm.