French courts rush dozens of looting suspects to trial amid procedural chaos

Following the widespread looting on October 17, roughly 50 suspects - mostly men and a few women - were placed on trial on October 20 in Paris, Lyon and Marseille. The Paris courthouse opened four standard courtrooms and added a fifth for about 20 guilty-plea procedures, while Marseille ran two courts at capacity. Bailiffs on the sixth floor hurried to find court-appointed lawyers, who were still searching for their clients' files.

When hearings began, a group of black-robed attorneys denounced what they called a "historic repression" of protesters and blamed Justice Minister Gérald Darmanin for attempting to steer judicial outcomes. Judges warned that any further postponements might breach the legal deadline for immediate trials, risking annulment of the proceedings.