The courthouse of Lyon Illustration. – E. Frisullo / 20 Minutes
- Tuesday evening, Leo and his brother Arthur were each sentenced to three months suspended prison sentence and a fine of 300 euros for having organized a “wild party” on the Saône quays in Lyon on March 30.
- For the defense, it is a “too severe sentence”.
- “The justice wanted to show the example”, deplores the lawyer of the two defendants who hoped for a sentence of community service.
“Justice wanted to set an example. And that’s what the defense feared. It was not until 22 hours Tuesday evening, for the criminal court of Lyon to start judging the case, and two more hours for it to render its judgment. Three months of suspended prison sentence and a fine of 300 euros were pronounced against Léo and Arthur, two brothers aged 23 and 27 respectively, prosecuted for having organized the “wild party” on the quays of the Saône, on March 30. latest. The judges also fined 1,500 euros against their association.
That day, at the end of the afternoon, 300 people, attracted by the music, had gathered at the bottom of the stairs of the fishery docks to drink and dance for more than two hours. Without wearing masks or respecting barrier gestures. And despite the prefectural decrees prohibiting the consumption of alcohol on public roads and gatherings of more than six people.
“A penalty far too severe”
At the end of the hearing, Mélanie Sanzari, the lawyer for the two defendants, had difficulty hiding her disappointment. “In my opinion, it is a sentence far too severe in relation to the sentences handed down in other cities and in relation to the personality of my clients”, she estimates in front of a forest of microphone.
The young woman however tried to plead the error of youth, the fed up with a situation which never seems to want to end. The desire to find a little carefree. “This is what it costs to let go,” she laments, adding that a sentence of community service would have been more appropriate. The two brothers, she recalls, are “not rebels”. One is studying for a master’s degree in “quality, hygiene, safety, environment”. The other, who holds a CAP in cooking, is currently in training to become a show manager.
“That it is difficult in 2021 to be 20 years old”
“That it is difficult in 2021 to be 20 years old”, underlines the lawyer before the magistrates. And to wonder: “Isn’t our youth in the process of cracking? She has been deprived of social life for over a year. Those carefree years will never be caught up with because of the Covid-19. The government even comes to offer free psychology sessions. Maybe this is a sign that things are not going well at the moment ”.
At the helm, Arthur and Léo keep a low profile. “The idea was to bring back a few people, stupidly admits the first. We had already organized this type of event in a park but it had not attracted more than 20 people ”. “It had never taken on such a scale. We let ourselves be overwhelmed, ”confirms his brother.
“I especially have the impression that you tried to give a big hand to the efforts made by everyone”, retorts the president of the court, not convinced by the arguments of the defendants. Photo in support, the lawyer lingers on the two amplifiers installed at the bottom of the platforms. “We see that people come, watch, stay. It is a magnet. So why didn’t you stop the music when you saw the situation was eluding you? “. “We were taken by the enthusiasm. We let ourselves be carried away by the euphoria. It was a moment of life, of smile, of madness, of freedom, ”replies the youngest.
“A gathering was illegal and immoral”
What to jump the lawyer general Dominique Sauve. “Your little joke lasted more than 2h15”, she notes furiously. And to drive the point home in a moralizing tone: “This gathering was illegal and immoral. He is contemptuous of the people who have died of this terrible virus, of those who are still hospitalized. He is contemptuous of the nursing staff who are at the end of their rope and of all those who are socially dying ”.
Describing “a form of provocation to authority”, the general counsel lingers at length on the invitation relayed by the two brothers on social networks: “Sound aperitif at the end of the day. We hope to see many of you coming to enjoy the last light of day with us, ”she reads in front of the sheepish duo. “And you tell us that this is a small meeting between friends, chokes Dominique Sauve. No, it’s a call to the party. You say clearly: confinement, who cares. The curfew, too ”.
Accusations that Mélanie Sanzari tries to sweep away. “They had no real intentions to defy the ban, nor to thumb their noses at authority. There is no claim on their part. It was just to find a semblance of normality, a moment of life… ”, concludes the lawyer for the two brothers. The defense has not indicated whether it will appeal this decision.