Gils Avérous, the various right-wing mayor of Châteauroux, is angry. He speaks of a bruised city and calls for a start. During a press conference this Monday, he returned to the theme of violence among minors. “We must manage to restore meaning to the values of the republic, and to make young people and teenagers aware that life is worth something.”
Cécile and Christophe, Matisse’s parents, are a family of restaurateurs known in Châteauroux. Since the murder of their 15-year-old son, an entire city has been bruised and in shock.
“Every time there is a tragedy like this, we say to ourselves: “What should we have done to avoid this?” Châteauroux is a small town, here everyone knows each other, so there is a bond, a solidarity, explains Gils Avérous, during a press conference this Monday, April 29. Every time there’s a tragedy, it’s something that hurts, a lot of us didn’t sleep last night. Because that is not the image of this city.“
The events took place on Saturday April 27 in the Saint-Denis district of Châteauroux, a classic residential area where the suspect lives, but not the victim. “There are a few blocks of buildings, but it is not a priority district within the framework of city policy which would have justified particular attention,” says Gil Avérous.
Since Saturday,he Castelroussins spontaneously began to put flowers where the events took place and in front of the victim’s parents’ restaurant. Expressions of sympathy are pouring in. The political recovery of the drama by elected officials too. Jordan Bardella, Éric Ciotti, Éric Zemmour… Several leaders of the right and the extreme right have denounced “migration policy“, thus referring to the foreign origins of the suspect.
While the public prosecutor declared that the suspect’s family was in a legal situation in our territory, Matisse’s family “does not want us to bring this subject into the public arena, to talk about immigration, nationality. It’s not something that resembles them“, assured the mayor of Châteauroux.
The question of a tribute circulated in the city. The National Rally even offered to organize a “turnkey white market“, but Matisse’s family refused. She takes a little time to “think about the terms of a tribute“, if there must be one.
Since the tragedy, Castellerous residents have spontaneously started to put up flowers.
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© Jean-Philippe Elme – France Télévisions
“The two protagonists are 15 years old. For me, this is proof of the wildness, of the ultra-violence that our society is experiencing among minors. There is a real national subjectestimated the mayor of Châteauroux. The Prime Minister, Gabriel Attal, spoke on the subject. He gave a deadline of 8 weeks to make recommendations, but it is really very, very urgent to redefine a policy in this area, with means for the justice system to perhaps more easily deprive minors under the age of 16 of their liberty. . Since there, the alleged murderer had been arrested twice, with one incident, 8 days ago, for a violent theft, which did not allow the justice system to incarcerate him.“
READ >> Murder of Matisse in Châteauroux: what does a minor suspected of murder risk?
There is also the question of parental education. I cannot imagine that parents would let a child out after he had been arrested twice and implicated in cases of violence. I cannot imagine that this young person would once again find himself on the street with a knife.
Gil Avérous, mayor of Châteauroux
The councilor says he regrets that Châteauroux is added to the examples.altercations between minors with minors dying and killed by other minors on several occasions“. Like the fatal beatings of Shemseddine, 15, in Viry-Châtillon, and that of Philippe, 22, in Grande-Synthe.
Asked about the usefulness of protection cameras and the security measures that could be put in place, Gil Avérous is clear. “The video protection will provide information on what happened, and see if other protagonists are involved. It is useful in prevention and to elucidate a matter which could be complex “. In the Matisse affair, there is no camera on the spot itself. “We can’t put cameras everywhere, it’s impossible,” explains the mayor.
On the question of the curfew, in this specific case, “It’s no use. It happened at 5:30 p.m., I wasn’t going to set a curfew at that time! We must use the curfew option when it is useful. Once again, the facts do not reflect our city“, justifies the mayor.
“Risk 0 does not exist, however, we must be able to change things on this specific issue of adolescents. Because today, we have a weakness in the system at the national level. Because what we experienced in the Saint-Denis district, we can relive it in the schoolyard, in a college, with our neighbors in Bourges or elsewhere. We must give meaning to the values of the Republic, and make young people and teenagers aware that life is worth something. And that walking around with a knife is not normal.”
Parents must address this issue, not just parents of children with difficulties, I believe it is important to talk to your children about what happened. This is an opportunity to say to ourselves that this act of violence must not happen again.
Gils Avérous, mayor of Châteauroux
“When you have a disagreement with another, it cannot be resolved with knives.“, he concludes.
