Physician and forensic specialist who serves as the United Nations special rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions. His work has included international forensic investigations and development of standards for investigating potentially unlawful deaths.
Case
France’s National Assembly approved a rebuttable presumption that police and gendarmes who fire their weapons acted within the law. The government calls it procedural protection; rights bodies warn about investigations and accountability.
Role at the time: United Nations special rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions
Response to this claim
A presumption favoring lawful firearm use could weaken the active search for evidence and increase the risk that potentially arbitrary deprivations of life go without accountability.
“Every potentially unlawful death involving law enforcement officials must be investigated through a prompt, thorough, effective, independent, impartial and transparent investigation. The duty to investigate every potentially unlawful killing rests with the State. It cannot be displaced, in law or in practice, by requiring victims or their families to rebut a legal presumption that the use of potentially lethal force was lawful before the facts have been independently established.”
Relative to the proposed statutory presumption, Tidball-Binz expressly urges rejection and argues that it threatens independent investigation and accountability. This is direct condemnation of the policy.
Statement dates: July 7, 2026
Statement dates: July 7, 2026
