His death shook the entire country. After the suicide of 13-year-old Lucas in January in the Vosges, his relatives had denounced acts of harassment, including mockery and homophobic insults. But after studying the case, the prosecutor's office no longer considers school bullying as the cause of suicide.

At the hearing, which was held behind closed doors Monday in Epinal, the juvenile court was seized of facts of school bullying committed between September 2022 and January 2023 and resulting in the suicide of the boy. But "in view of the analysis of the file and what was said at the hearing, there remained a doubt about causality," said Tuesday to AFP the prosecutor of Epinal, Frédéric Nahon, to justify the fact that the prosecutor did not request the recognition of harassment as a cause of suicide. "The juvenile court remains seized of all the facts, it will assess itself if indeed there is a causal link between the two," added the prosecutor.

Consequences for the four respondents

This request, if followed by the judges, would have significant consequences on the sentences incurred by the four students prosecuted. In the Criminal Code, penalties for school harassment are up to three years' imprisonment and a fine of €45,000, compared to ten years' imprisonment and a fine of €150,000 when harassment is recognized as the cause of the victim's suicide. For minors, as is the case in this case, the prison sentence cannot exceed half of the maximum provided for an adult, and the ceiling of the fine is set at 7,500 euros.

This reversal of the prosecutor's office is linked to "the date of the last act of harassment characterized, dating back to November. It was more than a month between the last characterized fact and the suicide, "justified Frédéric Nahon. "There may have been other facts then, but without necessarily that there is a direct link" with suicide, he explained. The period that will finally be retained by the judges for the acts of harassment, between September 2022 and January 2023 in the file or between September 2022 and November 2022 in the requisitions of the prosecutor's office, could also have consequences for the minors prosecuted.

The question of discernment

Several of them turned 13 at the end of 2022, but were only 12 years old when the first acts of harassment were committed in the case. However, the law establishes a presumption of non-discernment according to which, under the age of 13, a minor does not have the capacity to understand the consequences of his actions, and therefore cannot be convicted of an offence. However, this presumption may be challenged under several conditions. If discernment is effectively established, the minor may be subject to educational measures, but not to deprivation of liberty.

The lawyers of the four teenagers have called for the charges to be dropped. "We all pleaded for acquittal," Emmanuelle Larrière, a lawyer for one of the four students, told AFP. "The offence is not constituted, we do not need to discuss its possible consequences." The judgement was reserved until 5 June.

Lucas, 13, committed suicide on January 7, after writing a note expressing his desire to end his life. This suicide had aroused strong emotion. In Epinal in early February, several hundred people had participated in a white march in memory of the young boy.

  • Justice
  • Epinal
  • Lucas
  • Miscellaneous facts
  • Suicide
  • School bullying
  • Inquiry