Father sentenced to six months imprisonment for beheading threats against teacher near Toulouse
A father threatened to behead a schoolteacher in Fauga, Haute-Garonne. Convicted in summary proceedings, he was imprisoned Thursday evening.
Six months imprisonment following death threats against a teacher in Fauga
A father was sentenced Thursday evening to six months imprisonment in summary proceedings after threatening to behead a teacher at Clément Ader school, in Fauga, a town of 2,600 inhabitants south of Toulouse, according to huffingtonpost.fr. The man was imprisoned at the conclusion of the hearing.
The incident occurred on Friday 4 September at the end of school. The father, who had been summoned that day by the school management due to his nine-year-old son's behaviour — transferred to another class — confronted a teacher in the car park. The child had been stopped by the teacher, who told him to avoid "playing the tough guy" after she saw him smiling after lessons. These words apparently enraged the father.
The altercation did not stop in the car park: the father subsequently entered the school building, where he continued his threats, notably in front of the headteacher.
Reaction from the National Education Minister
"A teacher was threatened in an inadmissible manner", denounced National Education Minister Édouard Geffray on social network X on Thursday 10 September. "The reported facts are of extreme gravity", he added, expressing support for the teacher, her colleagues, pupils and their families.
Geffray clarified that functional protection had been granted to the victim, and recalled: "No teacher should be afraid to do their job. Targeting one of them is targeting the entire institution."
The rector of the Toulouse academy also condemned "in the strongest terms these particularly serious facts" in a statement transmitted to the local press, emphasising that "teachers must be able to carry out their mission without fear" and that "threats and intimidation can under no circumstances be tolerated".
Right of withdrawal and support for the teacher
Teachers at the school had exercised their right of withdrawal from the Monday following the incident. A letter of support was drafted by several parents, and a counselling service was put in place.
"We want to find peace of mind again, it is difficult to bear", declared Isabel Bagneris, first deputy in charge of school affairs for the town, to Actu Toulouse. "We support the teacher, whom we have known for years and who is very good. She is devastated", she added.
At the hearing, apologies "too late"
Before the court, the defendant, a father of three, offered his apologies in a weak voice, claiming he had "not measured the seriousness" of his remarks. Describing himself as "very, very protective" of his children, he added: "I am not a violent person by nature, I don't know what happened to me that day."
The public prosecutor had requested six months under electronic monitoring, accompanied by the obligation — deemed "absolutely essential" — to complete a citizenship course within six months, on pain of additional imprisonment of three months. Bans lasting three years on contacting the victim or presenting himself at the school had also been requested.
The court ultimately pronounced a more severe sentence: six months imprisonment, to which are added the additional penalties requested by the prosecution. The defendant was imprisoned immediately at the conclusion of the hearing.
Source: Google News LU FR