Three people will be tried in September for “contempt of person depositary of public authority”, after having insulted the head of state during his visit to Sélestat, in the Bas-Rhin.
Middle fingers and insults. Two men and a woman were arrested and placed in police custody following their actions towards the Head of State during his visit in Sélestat (Bas-Rhin), Wednesday 19 April. These three people, with no criminal record, will be tried in September. The public prosecutor of Colmar (Haut-Rhin), Catherine Sorita-Minard, told franceinfo that they will appear for “contempt of person depositary of public authority”, upon prior admission of guilt, “a usual mode of prosecution when the facts are recognized”.
What is the difference between contempt and insult?
According to article 433-5 of the Criminal Code, “words, gestures or threats“of the “writings or images of any kind not made public or the sending of any objects” constitute a contempt, if addressed “to a person charged with a public service mission, in the exercise or on the occasion of the exercise of his mission”, as long as they infringe “to his dignity”, Or “to respect” of his function.
“It is a common law offense, close to insult, contrary to which it must be addressed directly, in front of the person, in the exercise of his function, to which he relates”, specifies to franceinfo the lawyer Basile Ader, former vice-president of the Paris bar. There is therefore contempt only in the physical presence of the person insulted.
Is the Head of State protected by a specific law?
This is no longer the case since the repeal, in August 2013, of the offense of insulting the Head of State. This offence, included in the law of July 29, 1881, preserved “honor and dignity” of the President of the Republic. “There is no reason there should be an offense for him alone”, observes Basile Ader. Now it can be considered as a “person vested with public authority”in the same way as a minister, a prefect or a firefighter.
For defamation and insult, there is no public action without plaintiff. If he feels insulted, the Head of State can therefore lodge a complaint himself. As reminded The worldthis is what he had done in 2021 against the author of two posters pasted in La Seyne-sur-Mer and Toulon (Var), showing him in the guise and in the uniform of Adolf Hitler with the slogan “Obey. Get vaccinated”. The Var displayer had been sentenced to a fine of 5,000 euros for “public insults”, before the Court of Cassation canceled his conviction, on December 13, 2022, invoking the character “satirical and parodic” mentioned at the bottom of the poster.
On the other hand, for the contempt, the parquet floor can seize directly. “At this level, he does not allow insults to pass, it is necessarily unacceptable. Beyond the attack on the person, there is the protection of the function”says Basile Ader.
Can these protesters go to jail?
Theoretically yes, since contempt is punishable by one year’s imprisonment and a fine of 15,000 euros, when it is “addressed to a person vested with public authority”. In practice, people tried for this offence, even if the contempt is aimed at the President of the Republic, are rarely sentenced to prison terms.
In April 2018, a 61-year-old retiree who had given the middle fingers to Emmanuel Macron, during a stroll by the Head of State in the streets of Saint-Dié-des-Vosges (Vosges), received a a simple reminder of the law. The following year, two men who appeared for “contempt of a person responsible for public authority” were sentenced to citizenship courses. They had participated in a demonstration in Nantes, during which a mannequin bearing the image of Emmanuel Macron had been hanged and burned after a false trial. One of them had kicked the dummy.
On the other hand, a person prosecuted for insult, if this one is not “preceded by provocations”nor racist, incurs only a fine, which can reach 12,000 euros, according to article 33 of the law of July 29, 1881. This is what risks u50-year-old member of the “yellow vests” movement, who will be tried on June 20 at the Saint-Omer court (Pas-de-Calais) for “insulting the President of the Republic”, after having qualified Emmanuel Macron of“garbage” on his personal page, on the eve of his interview on TF1 and France 2 about the pension reform.