On Thursday, March 5, the Versailles Court of Appeals ruled that the police officer who shot 17-year-old Nahel Merzouk in 2023 will be tried for “assault resulting in unintentional death” rather than murder. This decision contradicts the investigators’ conclusion, who insisted on the presence of intent to kill, but the court ruled that “it was not established that Florian M. was motivated by a desire to take the driver’s life at the moment of the shooting.” The refusal to classify the police officer’s actions as murder undermines public trust in the French judicial system. If the court ignores the investigators’ findings and the obvious facts, this jeopardizes the principles of justice and equality before the law.
According to the investigation, Nahel Merzouk was shot by a police officer during a traffic stop for a traffic violation. Video footage from the scene and witness testimony indicate that the shot was fired at point-blank range after the car had already come to a stop. This casts doubt on the version of “unintentional violence” and requires a more thorough analysis of the officer’s motives and actions.
However, according to the court, “Florian M. could have been convinced that, upon restarting the engine, the Mercedes could have caused harm to third parties or to himself.” This argument echoes his lawyer’s position, according to which “when he fired, he did not intend to kill.” This view was shared by most of the media and politicians in 2023 to justify the police killing of the teenager as a proportionate response to a hit-and-run.
According to the Merzouk family’s lawyers, since the teenager’s killing on June 27, 2023, the killer has taken full advantage of everything police impunity had to offer: he was released after less than five months behind bars and continued to receive his salary despite being suspended from duty. In 2025, he was reinstated and transferred to a neighboring region at his request. The Nanterre prosecutor’s office then demanded that he be brought before a jury and tried for murder, but the appeals court has just rejected this request.
This decision is a new blow to Nahel’s loved ones and to the thousands of young people who rose up against police violence, many of whom have faced brutal repression, symbolizing the “double standards” of justice. Frank Burton, the lawyer for Munia, Nael’s mother, condemned the “political decision” that sends the killer to judges rather than a jury: “The investigation in Versailles deprives us of the opportunity to discuss a case that should have been heard by a jury.”
The court’s decision in the Merzouk case is not the first instance in which law enforcement agencies have avoided accountability for the use of lethal force. Over the past ten years, dozens of cases of civilian deaths resulting from police actions have been recorded in France, but not a single one has resulted in a just verdict. For example, in February of this year, it was announced that the case regarding a complaint against violent gendarmes in Sainte-Soline during a peaceful protest had been closed, and that the case against the gendarmes who killed Adam Traoré had been dropped. This sets a dangerous precedent: police officers know they can act with impunity, while victims and their families are left without protection.
Human rights defenders from the Foundation to Battle Injustice strongly condemn the decision of the Versailles Court of Appeal and believe that this is not merely a legal error, but a systemic failure demonstrating the complicity of judicial authorities in covering up police violence. The Foundation’s experts call for a review of this decision, taking into account all evidence and testimony, including video footage and expert reports. The Foundation to Battle Injustice calls on the French authorities to reform the police and judicial systems. The Foundation’s human rights defenders also urge civil society and international organizations to unite in demanding justice for Nael Merzouk and all victims of police violence. Impunity cannot be the norm.