Pauget calls the presumption a legal shield, not impunity
Éric PaugetSponsor of Bill 691 and member of the National Assembly
Pauget defended the proposed presumption as a legal shield for officers who use firearms in threatening situations, while rejecting the characterization that it would grant impunity.
“The aim, through the law, is to create a legal shield securing the framework for the use of weapons by those facing a threat. But presumption is not impunity. (Translated from French. Original: Il s’agit, par la loi, de créer un bouclier juridique sécurisant le cadre d’usage des armes de ceux faisant face à une menace. Mais la présomption n’est pas l’impunité.)”
Original text
Where this statement fits
Should France presume police and gendarmes acted lawfully when using firearms?
A bill filed by French lawmaker Éric Pauget and rewritten by the government would create a rebuttable presumption that national police officers and gendarmes who use firearms acted within an authorized statutory circumstance and complied with requirements of absolute necessity and strict proportionality. The National Assembly adopted the text on July 7, 2026, and sent it to the Senate. Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez and police-union supporters say the measure would protect officers without ending judicial review; the Defender of Rights, a UN special rapporteur and human-rights groups argue that it could weaken investigations, victims’ remedies and accountability for lethal force.
Source and context
Original text
About this source
Official verbatim National Assembly record. The bill’s sponsor argued that a presumption would protect officers facing danger and legal uncertainty, while stating that it would not amount to impunity.
Before the quotation
During the National Assembly’s general debate on his proposal, Pauget described violence and legal uncertainty faced by police and gendarmes.
After the quotation
He continued by distinguishing the proposed presumption from impunity and arguing that officers still operate within statutory limits.
How this statement is classified
The label describes this statement's response within the context above.
Why this label?
He authored the proposal and expressly argued for the presumption as a protective legal measure. That is direct support for the conduct at issue.
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More from this case
Read the full caseNuñez rejects the claim that the firearms bill creates a license to kill
“What we are creating is a simple presumption, which can be overturned very quickly, as the text provides. So stop saying everywhere that we have created a license to kill! (Translated from French. Original: Ce que nous créons est une simple présomption, qui peut être renversée très rapidement, ce que le texte prévoit. Arrêtez donc de dire partout que nous aurions créé un permis de tuer !)”Read statement
LDH says the police firearm presumption would obstruct investigations of shootings
Ligue des droits de l'Homme
“Yet establishing a presumption that shootings are lawful would amount to accepting from the outset that the use of the weapon was lawful, and therefore to slowing down, or even preventing, investigations, with the possible consequence that unjustified uses escape any sanction. As a result, victims would be deprived of any hope that the truth would come out, and all the current failings would be legitimized. (Translated from French. Original: Or l’instauration d’une présomption de légalité des tirs reviendrait à admettre d’emblée la conformité de l’usage de l’arme et donc de freiner, voire d’empêcher, la réalisation d’investigations, avec pour conséquence possible que des utilisations injustifiées échappent à toute sanction. Dès lors, les victimes seraient privées de toute espérance quant à la manifestation de la vérité et tous les dysfonctionnements actuels seraient légitimés.)”Read statement
Stéphane Peu opposes France's firearm-use presumption
“an inequality before the law (Translated from French. Original: une inégalité devant la loi)”Read statement
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The Dispute Index. "Pauget calls the presumption a legal shield, not impunity". First published: 2026-09-22. Last updated: 2026-10-07. https://disputeindex.com/events/1379-pauget-defended-the-proposed-presumption-as-a-legal