The attack that left one dead and two wounded on Saturday, December 2, near the Eiffel Tower in Paris, has reignited the debate on the post-release monitoring of radicalized inmates with psychiatric disorders. Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin himself on Monday pointed to a "psychiatric failure" in the monitoring of Armand Rajabpour-Miyandoab, the perpetrator of the attack. The issue is particularly sensitive because 20% of individuals listed in the surveillance register for the prevention of radicalization of a terrorist nature have psychological or psychiatric disorders, according to the Interior Ministry.

Though he was not diagnosed as psychotic, according to a source close to the investigation, Rajabpour-Miyandoab had had at least one delusional episode during his detention. In 2019, he told a guard that he had heard the voices of the terrorists who committed the November 2015 attack that killed 90 people at the Bataclan concert venue in Paris; and that he wanted to kill his parents.

As part of his suspended sentence with probation, a judge had ordered him to follow a treatment. After his release from prison in March 2020, he had to see a psychiatrist for three years. According to a source close to the case, he fulfilled this obligation, making 35 visits to his psychiatrist during this period.

However, in agreement with his doctor, Rajabpour-Miyandoab discontinued his treatment in March 2022. His suspended sentence with probation, which provided for the possibility of court-ordered treatment, came to an end in April 2023. The final medical report found no psychiatric danger and no need to resume medication. But a few months later, in October 2023, his mother alerted the authorities that her son was isolating himself and appeared to be relapsing.

At the time, Rajabpour-Miyandoab's behavior did not appear to pose a direct threat to public order. Therefore, the required conditions had not been met for a forced hospitalization, which can be decided by a prefect – a local representative of the state with broad delegated administrative powers – after validation by two doctors. The French public health code states that "psychiatric care by decision of the [prefect]" can be requested by the prefect for "people whose mental disorders require care and compromise the safety of persons or gravely undermine public order."

The only other option provided for by the law is a hospitalization without consent at the "request of a third party." State authorities suggested this option to his mother, who refused, "out of fear for her son," according to a source close to the investigation. A few weeks later, Rajabpour-Miyandoab killed a German-Filipino tourist near the Eiffel Tower. There was no indication that he was experiencing a delusional episode. According to one investigator, he claimed responsibility for his act in a very coherent manner in police custody and spoke in a reasoned manner.

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