“The State has failed in its mission to protect us,” says the lawyer for the widow of a victim, who is seeking compensation

“The State has failed in its mission to protect us”, estimates Monday May 20 on franceinfo Édouard Bourgin, lawyer for the widow of one of the four personnel of the Paris police headquarters killed by Mickaël Harpon in October 2019. Faced with the very probable risk that there will be no trial of this attack, the lawyer wrote to the Minister of the Interior to request compensation from the State, revealed the newspaper Le Parisien. In the brief sent to the minister, the lawyer listed “the 15 or 16 worrying events which all deserved to be reported” due to his radicalization, he details on franceinfo. He asks “very clearly to the minister to recognize the responsibility of the State”.

“In this case, how can we explain other than through serious faults that an Islamist attack could have struck one of the main intelligence services specializing in radicalization? I believe that the State must answer for its faults so that the State French is recovering”, estimates Édouard Bourgin. He denounces “serious personal faults” of certain agents and the faults of the State. If he does not get a response from the ministry, he plans to “seize the administrative court”.

On October 3, 2019, Michael Harpon, administrative agent at the intelligence directorate of the Paris police headquarters, killed three police officers and an administrative agent with a knife, before being shot dead in the courtyard of the police headquarters. Quickly, flaws were highlighted. The radicalization of this 45-year-old agent was in fact already known but his direct hierarchy did not report several incidents, such as his refusal to kiss women, or certain declarations after the Charlie Hebdo attack, notably “it is well done”. However, his defense secret clearance had been renewed.

On the legal front, the investigations are now complete and due to the death of Mickael Harpon and the lack of complicity, it is very likely that there will be no trial for this terrorist attack.