Femicide or “homemade” euthanasia? A man was placed in pre-trial detention on Friday in Nice, prosecuted for “intentional homicide by a spouse”, indicated the city prosecutor’s office. According to the specialized site Actu 17, which reveals these facts, the man, aged 87, explained during his police custody that he had acted to reduce the suffering of his partner, aged 88 and suffering from cancer, by strangling him with an electric cable. Elements that the prosecution was not immediately able to confirm.
The facts date back to the night of last Wednesday to Thursday during which the accused himself alerted the emergency services, who then went to the couple’s home in Nice. One hundred and eighteen women were killed in 2022 in France by their spouse or ex-spouse, four fewer compared to 2021, according to the report on “violent deaths within the couple” published on September 2 by the Ministry of the Interior. According to this study, 145 violent deaths within couples were recorded in 2022, 118 women and 27 men (+6 compared to 2021), almost the same total as the previous year (143). But this tragedy could also relaunch the question of the end of life in France…