On Wednesday 6 March, the Senate adopted, by a show of hands, a draft bill by Socialist Party Senator Patrick Kanner (Nord), aimed at improving the safety of firefighters by making it easier for witnesses to attacks against them to remain anonymous. “Since 2008, the number of reported attacks has more than tripled. This puts firefighters at risk, but also undermines the appeal of the profession,” said the bill’s rapporteur, Loïc Hervé (Union Centriste, Haute-Savoie). The number of reported assaults on firefighters rose by a record 23 per cent in 2017 and by 213 per cent over the last ten years. However, “a third of these assaults do not result in a formal complaint being lodged, no doubt for fear of reprisals,” argued Patrick Kanner, former president of the Nord Departmental Fire and Rescue Service (SDIS), the largest in France.
Anonymity for witnesses, but not for victims
The original bill provided for complaints lodged by firefighters who had been assaulted to be kept anonymous, in order to prevent any possible reprisals by the attackers. However, Loïc Hervé argued that this measure would have constituted “too great an infringement of the rights of the defence, as guaranteed by our Constitution and the European Convention on Human Rights”. The Law Committee therefore proposed preserving the anonymity not of the victims but of witnesses to assaults on firefighters. This would apply even to minor offences such as verbal abuse. “Whilst anonymity is currently provided for under the Code of Criminal Procedure for witnesses to crimes or offences punishable by more than three years’ imprisonment, the measure adopted would extend the use of this procedure to any offence, provided it is committed against a firefighter,” the Senate states in a press release.
Fact-finding mission
"Let us not take the easy route of stigmatising the residents of certain neighbourhoods. The psychological distress experienced by the perpetrators of many acts of violence against firefighters is not confined to disadvantaged neighbourhoods. Sometimes, these acts of violence occur in the context of a road traffic accident,” argued Laurent Nunez, the Secretary of State to the Minister for the Interior, who opposed the bill. The Secretary of State intends to prioritise strengthening existing legislation, referring to a circular dated 13 March 2018 which facilitates firefighters filing complaints by appointment at an emergency services centre and encourages them to have complaints registered with the SDIS to guard against possible reprisals. “Inter-service protocols at departmental level are being put in place to increase cooperation between the police, the gendarmerie and the fire service,” he also noted.
Furthermore, a decree on the use of body-worn cameras by firefighters has been “submitted to the CNIL with a view to launching the pilot scheme in the third quarter of 2019”, the Secretary of State said.
The Senate Legal Affairs Committee has also approved the establishment of an internal fact-finding mission to examine the issue and come up with further solutions.
The proposed legislation must be considered by the Assembly. At the same time, the Assembly is also required to consider another draft bill by MP Eric Pauget (LR, Alpes-Maritimes) aimed at strengthening penalties against those who attack firefighters, as well as members of the armed forces, police officers, gendarmes, municipal police officers and healthcare staff.