It had stirred up witnesses to the scene on Wednesday afternoon in Nice-Nord. A father was tried in immediate appearance by the Nice criminal court this Friday evening, following his custody. Found guilty of willful violence by a spouse, he received 18 months in prison, 6 of which were suspended on probation.
Prosecutor Mégane Nomel had requested two years in prison against Mehdi Z., 38 years old. But the latter will not sleep in prison tonight. The court presided over by Christian Legay allows him to serve his one-year sentence under an electronic bracelet. He also has the obligation to take care of himself and to work, under his probationary suspension.
The court seems to have been sensitive to the arguments of Me Hadrien Grattirola. The defense lawyer argued for a probationary suspension, or at least a mixed sentence. In the event of incarceration, he warned of “catastrophic consequences” for his son, aged 10, in whose care Mehdi Z. has custody.
The victim absent from the hearing
The defendant admitted to having lost his temper when he saw his son's mother come knocking on the grandmother's door to see him. He then beat this woman, including on the ground, before taking her into his car by the collar. To take him to the police station, he says. He finally changed his mind and took her down near the Jean Bouin swimming pool.
The victim did not wish to file a complaint or become a civil party. She was absent at the hearing. It is difficult, in such conditions, to precisely establish the seriousness of his injuries.
