Didier Lallement, the controversial police prefect of Paris, has not resisted the chaotic management of the Champions League final on May 28, which caused an international scandal and damaged the image of France as a country that organizes mass events. The replacement of the police officer, with the excuse of his retirement, will be made official in the Council of Ministers on the 20th, in full vacation exodus. The leak of the news to the press has prevented it from being a discreet procedure.
Appointed in 2019, at the height of the yellow vest revolt, to impose a heavy hand and quell riots that paralyzed large cities every Saturday, Lallement had long been highly questioned for his methods. What happened in the surroundings of the Stade de France before the eyes of televisions around the world was the straw that broke the camel’s back. The police were overwhelmed and used disproportionate methods against peaceful fans who simply wanted to enter the stadium. In addition, the endemic insecurity of the Parisian suburbs was exposed. Many fans were mugged and robbed.
Lallement had already been the subject of much criticism for endorsing police brutality against the yellow vests. Several dozen protesters were blinded by rubber bullets or seriously injured. The police prefect also waged an endless battle against the City Council and against the mayor, the socialist Anne Hidalgo, regarding the fight against crack trafficking. There was no consensus on what to do with drug addicts and dealers. Lallement opted for several forced relocations, simply moving the problem between various points in the northern neighborhoods of Paris and driving the residents to despair.
Lallement has also been under the spotlight, in recent months, for several tragic incidents at police checkpoints in the capital and its outskirts. There have been four gunshot deaths at checkpoints where vehicle drivers refused to stop and officers fired. The prefect is accused of having imposed a culture of extreme severity on the police that has dramatic consequences.
As a substitute for Lallement, the name of Laurent Núñez -of Spanish family origin-, former Secretary of State for the Interior and current national coordinator of intelligence and the fight against terrorism, a man very worked on security issues, is being considered. Núñez was police prefect of the Bouches-du-Rhône department, whose capital is Marseille.
The new prefect faces the complex task of preparing Paris for the 2024 Olympic Games. The security of the sporting event requires exhaustive preparation, especially since an unprecedented opening ceremony is planned, with a parade of athlete delegations, in boats, by the Seine, and an audience of hundreds of thousands of people who will have free access to both banks of the river. This program, very attractive from the media, however, generates enormous concern among those responsible for security
