French courts have jailed 217 people after fast-track trials linked to last weekend’s rioting, Justice Minister Gerald Darmanin said on Thursday. He praised the judiciary’s response as “extremely firm”.
Speaking outside the Fleury-Merogis prison on the outskirts of Paris, Darmanin said 2,700 people had been detained since Saturday. He added that more than 1,000 of them had appeared in court, and said the number of jailings was “continuing to rise a lot”.
Profile of those sent to prison
Darmanin told reporters that half of the 217 people sent to jail had no criminal record. He said they were generally men aged between 18 and 25.
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He argued that this showed prosecutors and judges were jailing people who had never before come to the attention of the justice system. Darmanin has vowed to oversee expedited trials to clear the backlog of cases and act as a deterrent.
New protests over grievances including the rising cost of living are planned for this weekend. Some lawyers have accused the judiciary of drifting into repression.
Prison overcrowding and record inmate numbers
France, like many European countries, faces prison overcrowding. Darmanin said the solution was not to imprison fewer people but to create more space in prisons.
According to ministry statistics, there were 90,020 inmates in French prisons as of September 1. That figure is well above the capacity of 63,348 places and is a new record.
