Police Trial: Zecler Emphasises Decisive Role of CCTV Footage
Michel Zecler testified on Tuesday during the trial of three police officers accused of assaulting him in November 2020. The music producer stressed the importance of CCTV footage in establishing his status as a victim.
Significant Testimony Before Paris Criminal Court
Michel Zecler, a music producer, spoke for three hours on Tuesday afternoon before the criminal court of Paris as a civil party. According to franceinfo.fr, he repeatedly emphasised the crucial importance of CCTV footage: "If there had been no videos, I would not be standing before you as a victim today."
Dressed in a grey-green suit, the 47-year-old man described an assault that had "overturned his life" in November 2020 in the entrance to his music studio. Within minutes, he received nearly 30 blows from fists, feet and batons, according to images captured by his security camera and viewed in the courtroom.
Images Reveal Brutality of the Arrest
The three accused — Aurélien Lapersonne, Brigadier Philippe Tondeux and Pierre Plantier — are seen in the videos forcing Michel Zecler out of the studio. An officer from the General Inspectorate of the National Police (IGPN) confirmed during the hearing that several techniques observed were not authorised, notably a headbutt and blows struck to the head with a telescopic baton.
An IGPN captain recalled that the areas to be struck according to regulations are "the torso and lower limbs" and not the head. He also noted that "the number of blows struck should have been mentioned in the arrest report" — a point made all the more significant by the fact that the three police officers also falsely claimed that Michel Zecler had struck them, contrary to what the videos demonstrate.
Absence of Mask and Justified Fear
Michel Zecler explained that his only "fault" was failing to wear a face mask against Covid-19 that evening. He refused to leave the premises and informed the police that they were being filmed in a private space. "I thought they wanted to beat me up, kill me," he declared, explaining why he did not leave the studio despite the orders.
The producer reiterated that he had not resisted out of disrespect but because "I respected [the uniform]." He attempted to communicate with the police, naively believing they had mistaken him for someone else.
Accusations of Racial Discrimination
Michel Zecler stated that he heard racist insults during the assault: "They called me a 'dirty nigger', they threatened me, they said they were going to kill me while beating me." Although the investigating judges found that "the evidence against him" was "insufficient to establish the racist dimension of these acts of violence," the producer remains convinced of the discriminatory nature of the facts.
Physical Injuries and Persistent Trauma
The medical consequences were substantial: cranio-facial trauma, a scalp wound and complete rupture of the tendon in his left arm. "Even today I dream of these injuries, even today I see them beating me, even today I sleep badly because of them," Zecler explained.
The impact on his professional life remains significant. "I have never disliked light, I love my profession but since I met these people... They took many things from me and destroyed many things," he confided to the court president.
Decisive Importance of Video Evidence
Michel Zecler stressed that without the videos, he would probably have been discredited. "I keep telling myself that if I had not had my videos, if they were not there, today I would be trying to justify myself to say what I did not do." An IGPN officer corroborated this analysis: "This is a case in which, thanks to video, the false nature of the arrest report came to light."
The three police officers are being tried for aggravated violence and forgery of public documents. The courtroom was full on the second day of the trial, with supporters present, including actor Jean-Pascal Zadi and former footballer Lilian Thuram.
Source: BFM TV