France Faces Outcry Over Alleged Police Racism and Brutality Against Teens

The four teenagers - one is black, two are of Maghrebi origin, the last is white - had met up with friends on May 26 in Vitry-sur-Seine before their arrest. They claim to have suffered violence, racist and homophobic insults ("nigger", "faggot", "this black guy is a pain in the ass"), and humiliation from the law enforcement, reports Mediapart and France Inter.

The day before their arrest, the police had recorded a complaint for the snatching of a piece of jewelry. On Tuesday, May 26, "the police are under surveillance, identify these young people who may correspond to the description of the perpetrators and proceed with their arrest," says a police source.

The families of the four teenagers filed a complaint against unknown persons for "arbitrary detention", "racist and homophobic insults" and "discrimination". Similarly, one of the families announced that it had referred the matter to the courts for "intentional violence by a person holding public authority". According to the complaints, "the transport takes place under doubtful safety conditions, the children being handcuffed with their hands behind their backs, sitting one on top of the other for two of them and without a seat belt".

The Créteil public prosecutor’s office intended, on Wednesday, June 10, to refer the matter to the General Inspectorate of the National Police (IGPN). The next day, the families of the middle school students held a press conference in Ivry-sur-Seine, at the premises of the deputy Mathilde Panot (La France insoumise), during which they denounced a "facial profiling", "trampled rules of law" and a "biased investigation" against "innocent" people.