In response to French Prime Minister Gabriel Attal's description, on April 18, of "unbridled, morbid and unregulated violence" on the part of certain young people, we propose, as historians, to add a new chapter to the civic education program he holds dear. It would be entitled: "Juvenile justice or the long history of an addiction to punishment." It would tell our schoolchildren how, since the 19th century, his predecessors have dealt with the "scourge of juvenile delinquency," described as "ever more violent, more numerous, more precocious" (Le Petit Journal, 1907). Students would probably be surprised to discover that his proposals are part of a fascinating continuum, have been implemented repeatedly and that their effectiveness is questionable when examined.
The chapter would begin in 1810. Together, we would open Napoleon's penal code – an emperor not known for leniency. The students would read in its articles the desire to no longer judge a child as an adult and the need to be able to excuse them on the grounds of being a minor. They will also observe that perhaps frightened by boldness, the imperial legislator nevertheless ensured that any child capable of walking and stealing an apple could be sent to an ordinary prison.
The story continues with an analysis of the 1850 law "on the patronage of young detainees," designed to remedy the failure of prison. At the time, Les Républicains MPs considered that the kid from Paris, the little vagabond, the child of working-class parents – often described as stunted by work and corrupted by alcohol – should benefit from correction before "falling into delinquency," to use Attal's words. To reform him, they argue, he needs to be placed in a disciplinary boarding school, away from the city and a failing family, to get him back on the right track.
Despite parliamentary reports condemning the cost of these institutions, their violence and the high recidivism rate of the young people placed there, these "prison farm colonies" proliferated. France was worried! Gangs of cruel youngsters regularly made the headlines, and the statistics were already clear: "From 16 to 20, the number of young delinquents quadruples." (Le Temps, 1899); "Alarming increase of nearly 50% in delinquent children in 20 years." (Le Journal, 1901).
Social support for minors
The course would then move on to the turbulence of the early 20th century. In 1912, a new law courageously recognized that social support for juvenile delinquents was a priority. However, the law had neither the means nor the time to be enforced, as the Great War rekindled concerns about youth drifting astray.
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