The question of police violence, which has long been highly significant in the USA, is now also a subject of debate in France. It is becoming increasingly prominent as a result of media coverage of a number of major incidents and the intervention of citizens or groups uniting around the issue. Among the subjects regarded as troubling in this regard, police stops, which at times have led to violent incidents, are very much to the fore. They are the main focus of this article.
Drawing on a Europe-wide research project, Jacques de Maillard and Mike Rowe offer an analysis of police stop-and-search practices in Europe and the way these are framed in public debate and by political decision-makers. After reminding us of the factors that have brought police stops into public focus, they examine the impact of that increased attention on the way these are carried out — and, to varying degrees, overseen — in a range of countries (Germany, Scotland, Spain, Austria, Finland etc.) by comparison with France, with particular reference to the level of trust between police and society. In this way, they show how stop-and-search practices and related policies have developed differently in response to the questions raised in the debates: with ‘incremental’ changes, some a little more extensive and even significant, as opposed to inertia. Lastly, they stress the specificity of France, where reforms have been particularly difficult to implement, and outline three possible developmental scenarios for the country.
