A parliamentary investigation report recommends better training for police officers almost a year after the fatal shooting of a teenager in France and the serious riots that followed.
The report, presented on Wednesday at the National Assembly in Paris, states that training should be expanded and that stress management and conflict resolution, especially during traffic stops, should become part of basic police training and advanced.
Furthermore, the police’s technical means of stopping cars during an inspection must be expanded and patrol cars must be equipped with cameras.
The investigation was commissioned following the death of 17-year-old Nahel during a traffic stop in Nanterre, near Paris, in June last year. Two police officers stopped the teenager because he was traveling too fast in a car in the bus lane.
When the teenager suddenly started driving again, one of the police officers shot him dead. This was followed by serious riots and protests against police violence in France. The police officer who fired the shot is still being investigated on suspicion of premeditated murder.
The investigation also focused on the question of whether easier regulations on the use of weapons during traffic checks led to an increase in police shootings in 2017.
On average, at least, this does not appear to be the case. Only in less than one percent of cases in which drivers ignored a police stop sign did they use weapons.
