Peyrefitte Report and Its Aftermath

• NCJ Number: 73948
• Journal: Revue de science criminelle et de droit penal compare Issue: 3 Dated: (July-September 1980) Pages: 573-586
• Author(s): R Schmelck
• Date Published: 1980
• Length: 14 pages
• Publication Format: Article
• Language: French
• Country: France
• Note: Paper read at the general assembly of the Center for Research in Criminal Policy on December 11, 1979.

Annotation

The origins of the French Committee for Studies on Violence, Crime, and Delinquency, the results of the committee's work, and the effects of that work are outlined.

Abstract

The committee was founded by the President of the Republic in March of 1976 to study psychological and biological aspects of violence, effects of urbanization and cultural change on behavior, the relationship between violence and the economy, juvenile protection, and the problem of crime from the corrections perspective. The committee findings indicated a rapid rise in crime since 1966, with a particularly great increase in property crimes since 1971. Public insecurity about crime appears to be affected by media publicity and by living in an aggressive environment. According to the report, violent behavior is aggravated by media emphasis on violence, by unemployment, by the general decline of the family, and by exaltation of consumption. Other factors are the reduced likelihood of punishment, the urban environment, anonymity and isolation, the proliferation of rules governing official agencies, and neglect of preventive measures. Committee recommendations relate to improvement of the statistical apparatus and research on urbanization, to family and juvenile protection, to combatting alcoholism, and to the role of the mass media. The Government responded by establishing a committee for immediate application of the recommendations. Consequently, special police security units have improved security, police strength in high risk areas has been reinforced, and many officers have been relieved of administrative tasks. Corrections policy has been modified so that sentencing decisions that return offenders to outside life are being based upon offender dangerousness. Fines and probation as alternatives to imprisonment for minor crimes were extended in a 1975 law. To reduce criminal violence, a sustained prevention effort and emphasis on the values of responsibility and respect for life are necessary.