It was three years ago. On November 5, 2018, eight people were killed in the collapse of several buildings on rue d’Aubagne, in the heart of Marseille. Three years later, the investigation is still ongoing, in order to shed light on this complex drama, characterized by a tangle of responsibilities. 20 minutes make the point.
Who are the people in the sights of justice?
At the time of this writing, justice has proceeded to three indictments in this case. On November 3, the Marseille prosecutor’s office indicted Marseille Habitat, a semi-public company in the city and owner of 63 rue d’Aubagne, one of the collapsed buildings, for manslaughter by deliberate violation of an obligation safety, unintentional injury and endangering the life of others.
A few days later, the Liautard cabinet, trustee of the condominium at 65, rue d’Aubagne, the only one of the two buildings that was occupied at the time of the disaster, was indicted for the same reasons. At the same time, the prosecution also indicted Julien Ruas, at the time deputy mayor (LR) in charge of prevention and risk management. An indictment almost immediately contested by the principal concerned, who instructed these lawyers to file an appeal in nullity.
A year later, however, this case remains at a standstill, as confirmed by 20 minutes Me Olivier Pardo, lawyer for Julien Ruas. “We’re getting impatient,” he annoys. We still do not have an audience, even though we are relaunching them regularly. But it is not a sword strike in the water. The recognition of the nullity of an indictment is very rare, and in my office, these requests are not made for nothing. The judge asked for the indictment, saying that we would see afterwards, when there is nothing in terms of serious and concordant evidence against my client. There is a real subject. “
In view of the file, the lawyers for the civil parties questioned by 20 minutes await further indictments in this case. “I do not see how all the owners of 65 rue d’Aubagne could be put aside,” says Florence Briand, lawyer for a family of victims. “So far, the investigating judge has received the families once a year, shortly before the anniversary date of the collapses,” notes Brice Grazzini, also lawyer for several families of victims. This time, the judge will receive us on January 7th. If he does it on this date, I suspect that it is because things will happen between now and then… It is all a question of cascades of responsibility. Who really had the power on this file? “
“My clients expect a lot from this meeting,” abounds Me Florence Briand. This is an extremely important step, in a process which remains very painful for them. “
What do legal expertises say?
In a long report that 20 minutes obtained and which served as the basis for these indictments, the experts appointed by the courts to analyze the situation of these buildings clearly suggest that these collapses were, unfortunately, in no way a surprise. “All the experts who had intervened since 2005 had unanimously pointed out the seriousness of the situation and its evolution, for each of the buildings 63, 65 and 67 rue d’Aubagne”, write the experts.
And to conclude: “The collapse of buildings […] was the culmination of a long history intrinsically shared between these three buildings built in the mid-18th and early 19th century, the dilapidation of which had affected them all had been evident and growing during the second half of the 20th century, without this situation having been taken then, nor subsequently taken into consideration at the technical level, as was necessary, in particular when the seriousness of the evolutionary disorders to which was added a significant maintenance deficit had been, however, at the same time identified and explained, from 2005 to 2018. “
In this already degraded situation, and characterized by a certain laissez-faire, the rain which fell on Marseille a few weeks before the tragedy represented, according to the experts, an aggravating factor, “because of the very imperfect control of the water. rain from the recessed rear parts of the buildings ”, which resulted in“ flooding of water in the basement. “
When is a trial?
The investigation currently being carried out into this tragedy seems to be taking place for a long time, for several reasons. “This is a sensitive issue, notes Me Florence Briand. These kinds of procedures necessarily take time. To this must be added the coronavirus crisis, which means that the courts have closed for several months and are even more crowded. “
“Before, the file was entrusted to the criminal brigade and a dozen police officers were on the spot,” explains Brice Grazzini. Now, I have been told that there were one or even two who were working full time on this case. According to the lawyer, the trial would only take place in “five to six years.”
In the meantime, the insurance companies have proceeded to provisional compensation for the civil parties. “As we do not know who, in the end, will be responsible, all the insurance companies have created a common office, notes Me Grazzini. There are those who take charge of everything and at the end we will distribute it according to the responsibilities. “