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Bruno Studer, a La Renaissance MP for Bas-Rhin, and several of his colleagues, are launching a bill on intentional attacks against cyclists. It follows a previous amendment to the LOPMI bill which could not be declared admissible.
“The next one, I’ll get him“: these were the words spoken by singer Michel Sardou against cyclists who do not respect the Highway Code, during an interview broadcast on Sunday evening on France 2.
Bruno Studer, MP for Bas-Rhin, was stunned to learn of these remarks and regrets that the incident that occurred on Sunday afternoon in Gironde, which left 4 injured, resonates disturbingly with the violence of the singer’s words.
While no one is perfect, not even cyclists, it is important to remember their particular vulnerability on our roads. Beyond the artist’s remarks, it should be noted that intentional violence against cyclists has been on the rise for several years, causing legitimate concern that needs to be addressed.
Thus, in order to correct the legislative incongruity of the penal code, which provides for identical additional penalties in the event of intentional or unintentional harm to a cyclist, Bruno Studer has decided to transcribe the provisions initially provided by way of amendment (1) to the Interior Ministry’s orientation and programming bill in the form of a proposed law.
The proposed law modifies the additional penalties provided for in article 222-44 of the penal code by introducing into the paragraphs relating to the suspension and cancellation of driving licenses a modulation of penalties depending on whether the attacks are intentional or unintentional.
(1) The amendment initially submitted was deemed inadmissible on the basis of article 45 of the Constitution.
The proposed law
… presented by Mesdames and Messieurs Bruno STUDER, Guillaume GOUFFIER-CHA, Laurence HEYDEL GRILLERE, Béatrice PIRON, Bertrand SORRE, Violette SPILLEBOUT, Stéphane TRAVERT and David VALENCE, MPs.
Statement of reasons
“The next one, I’ll get him“. These were the terms used by a famous variety singer during an interview broadcast on Sunday evening on France 2, regarding scooter users and cyclists who do not respect the Highway Code. By coincidence, a little earlier in the afternoon, in Gironde, a motorist intentionally hit four cycle tourists on a road in Sadirac.
The violence of these public remarks resonates disturbingly in this incident, which is unfortunately not an isolated case. The daily press regularly reports on assaults against cyclists, often gratuitous, which have been multiplying for several years and sometimes resemble real man hunts: in the Chevreuse valley near Gif-sur-Yvette, at the entrance to a roundabout near Bourg-en-Bresse, on the road from Semussac to Royan, to name only the most publicized examples.
Many of them concern sports cyclists, sometimes professionals, and cycle tourists, riding on country roads, but the problem is not limited to this. In the city, on a daily basis, numerous acts of incivility, often aimed at intimidating or frightening other users, endanger cyclists and cause harm to individuals which, while sometimes less serious, nonetheless undermine coexistence in public spaces.
While no one is perfect, not even cyclists, it is important to remember their particular vulnerability on our roads, both in the city and in the countryside. 227 cyclists were killed on the road in 2021, the highest in twenty years, a sharp increase compared to 2019 (+ 21%). Because streets and roads belong to all users, this observation calls for a particular responsibility of motorists and other motorized vehicles towards the most vulnerable users.
The height of intolerance and refusal to share public space, attacks against cyclists on the road fall under intentional attacks on personal integrity, as defined in Section 1 of Chapter II of Title II of Book II of the Penal Code. Violence resulting in death without intent to kill is thus punishable by fifteen years of criminal imprisonment (art. 222-7 of the penal code), while that resulting in mutilation or permanent disability is punishable by ten years of imprisonment and a fine of 150,000 euros (art. 222-9).
In all cases, the use of a vehicle, qualified as a weapon by destination, constitutes an aggravating circumstance. The repressive framework in place therefore only faces the difficulty of gathering evidence.
The suspension or cancellation of a driving license is also among the additional penalties that can be pronounced by the criminal judge. Paradoxically, as identified by Maître Michel Benezra, president of the legal commission of the association “Mon Vélo est une Vie”, today, the duration of the suspension of a driving license is the same whether the acts are intentional or unintentional, or even longer in the case of unintentional harm with aggravating circumstances. Yet, what could be more serious than intentionally hitting a vulnerable user?
Faced with this inconsistency in the penal code, the association “Mon Vélo Est Une Vie” created by Tony BERTUCCI in 2017 is mobilizing, notably through a petition and awareness-raising among local and national elected officials, to obtain a modification of the duration of the suspension and cancellation of driving licenses.
To put an end to this situation, Article 1 of this proposed law modifies the additional penalties provided for in Article 222-44 of the penal code by introducing into the paragraphs relating to the suspension and cancellation of driving licenses a modulation of penalties depending on whether the attacks are intentional or unintentional.
Because it appears urgent to curb this spiral of intolerance on our roads and in public spaces, Article 2 asks the Government for a report on intentional attacks against cyclists and other vulnerable users. This report should provide precise statistics on these attacks, particularly the territories and populations most concerned. This report also aims to identify obstacles to the collection of evidence and ways to remedy them.
This proposed law, unfortunately, will not in itself resolve the growing tension between road users. We only hope that it will contribute to a collective awareness of the need for greater tolerance towards other users and a more peaceful sharing of the road between motorized and non-motorized users.
Article 1
Article 222-44 of the penal code is hereby amended as follows:
In paragraph 3, replace “The suspension, for a period of five years at most, of the driving license, this suspension may be limited to driving outside professional activity;” with “The suspension of the driving license, for a period of five years at most in the event of unintentional harm, for a period of ten years at most in the event of intentional harm, this suspension may be limited to driving outside professional activity;“.
In paragraph 4, after “five years at most.“, insert “in the event of unintentional harm, for ten years at most in the event of intentional harm.”
Article 2
Within six months of the promulgation of this law, the Government shall submit to Parliament a report on intentional attacks against cyclists and other vulnerable users, with a view to obtaining precise statistics on these attacks and identifying obstacles to the collection of evidence and ways to remedy them.
Source: Press Release
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