The Albany Gazette - Paris officers accused of beating black producer to stand trial in November

The trial comes after officers beat Michel Zecler in November 2020 during a confrontation over a supposed "strong smell of cannabis" and for not wearing a mask as was required during the Covid-19 pandemic.

Three of the officers will appear before the Paris Criminal Court from November 9, where they face charges of intentional violence resulting in total incapacity to work for more than 45 days, by a person in a position of public authority, in a group and with a weapon.

The officers -- aged 28, 37 and 49 -- also face charges of forgery of public documents by a person in a position of public authority after they allegedly "largely concealed" the assault in their police report to "distort reality", the investigating judges said in a referral order seen by AFP in June.

Lawyers for Zecler and the accused officers did not immediately respond to requests for comment or declined to speak when contacted by AFP on Tuesday.

- Cause celebre -

The attack on Zecler, which was caught on camera, became a rallying cause for those who accuse the police of institutionalised racism and brutality.

An independent investigation by a French rights ombudswoman found that the producer suffered six blows to the face while he was being held down on the ground, even though he had not struck or attempted to strike the officers.

It also determined that the officers had used "racist" insults against the producer during the four-minute ordeal.

But the investigating judges ruled out the possibility that the attack was racist in nature because the evidence failed to meet the standard of proof required for a criminal charge.

The judges said in the referral order seen by AFP that this decision did not assume or assert that Zecler's statements were "insincere".

The public prosecutor had requested that this circumstance be taken into account.

A fourth officer, aged 40, who used disproportionate force when he launched a teargas grenade into the closed music studio, is to be tried separately for violence with a weapon.

The incident triggered a reaction from President Emmanuel Macron, who said at the time that the police's actions were "unacceptable" and "shameful".

There have been an increasing number of allegations of police violence in France in recent years, notably during the "yellow vest" protests between 2018 and 2019.

(A.Johnson--TAG)