appeal

Take Down Macron Protester Cases - appeal

judgment

Take Down Macron Protester Cases - judgment

Filing Year For Action

In more than 35 trials, climate protestors across France have defended against theft and refusal to provide DNA charges stemming from their activities as part of the <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/sep/11/climate-change-activists-trial-paris-stealing-macron-portraits">"Take Down Macron"</a> movement. Defendants argued that they had stolen or attempted to steal portraits of the French President, Emmanuel Macron, in official city and government buildings out of necessity to call attention to France's failure to meet its climate targets. Judgments in the trials ranged from acquittals to fines of hundreds of Euros. Cour d'appel Lyon 4ème chambre overturned the trial court judgment on January, 14, 2020. Several of the judgments were appealed, with at least three cases reaching their final conclusion as of December 2020. Documents from six of the cases are available below. More documents will be added as they become available.

In one of the trials, in Lyon, two defendants were charged with fraudulently removing the portraits from a town hall in Lyon in February 2019. The prosecutor sought to impose a fine of 500 euros on each defendant. The court heard testimony from a former government minister that France has not complied with the Paris Agreement due to a lack of political will, and that only the president can order the action required by the present situation. An ecologist also testified about the necessity for rapid change in order to limit temperature rise. The defendants argued that the use of legal channels and warnings from scientific experts had not provided sufficient leverage, and they believed that acts of nonviolent civil disobedience were required to raise awareness of the need for policy change.

The court agreed, finding that climate change seriously affects the future of humanity by provoking natural disasters, leading to violent conflicts, and threatening flora and fauna; and that although France is committed to certain measures to address climate change, the defense's submissions showed that the government's objectives will not be achieved. The court concluded that, under these circumstances, citizens' means of expression could not be limited to voting, and that the defendants' theft of the portrait was a necessary substitute for impossible dialogue between the government and the people. The court accordingly acquitted both defendants. 

The prosecutor appealed the judgment, and the appeal hearing was set for December 19, 2020. 

The Court of Appeals in Bordeaux sentenced 8 activists with 600 euro fines. This decision was overturned by the Court of Cessation which argued that the criminalization of these actions might interfere with the defendants' freedom of expression. The activists were retried in a court in Tolouse in February 2022. In April 2022, the activists were released. The case is now closed.

Take Down Macron Protester Cases

The Climate Litigation Database

Find climate change litigation data and indicators for {text}.

{text} litigation

Sabin Center for Climate Change Law provides Climate Litigation Database, a comprehensive database of US and Global climate change caselaw

Quickly and easily search through the complete text of thousands of climate change law and policy documents from every country.

Search the Climate Litigation Database

An aim to achieve a quantifiable outcome within a given time-frame, set by an institution such as a national government.

Policy instruments are techniques or tools used by governing authorities to promote certain policies in order to achieve predetermined goals. Put simply, instruments are how a government tries to achieve its goals, with this taxonomy being focused on national policy instruments.

Risk is the potential for adverse consequences resulting from the dynamic interplay between (climate-related) hazards, exposure, and vulnerability of affected human or ecological systems.

Groups  of people who are adversely affected by climate change or the response to it

A set of principles, processes, and practices that build economic and political power to shift from an extractive economy to a regenerative economy.

Renewable energy means all forms of energy produced from renewable sources in a sustainable manner.

Fossil fuel is a generic term for non-renewable energy sources such as coal, fossil gas, and oil (including crude oil, and petroleum products), that can be used for electricity and heat generation. Fossil fuels are hydrocarbons formed from pressurised and heated organic material buried over millions of years.

Molecules in the atmosphere that play a key role in the greenhouse effect by trapping heat radiating from Earth’s surface.

Area of the economy in which actors engage in identical or related activities.

In human systems, the process of adjustment to actual or expected climate change and its effects, in order to moderate harm, increase resilience or exploit beneficial opportunities. In natural systems, the process of adjustment to actual climate change and its effects; human intervention may facilitate adjustment to expected climate change and its effects.

The management and allocation of funds, assets and investments to meet various objectives

Any substance with chemical properties that can cause physical harm to people or damage the environment, including ammonia, carbon monoxide, phosphine, chlorine, arsenic, cadmium, mercury, pesticides, dioxins, microplastics, benzene, asbestos, aflatoxins, fluoride, methanol, and toxins from marine sources.

Slow onset events evolve gradually from incremental changes over many years or from increased frequency or intensity of recurring events. As defined in the Cancun Adaptation Framework (2010), slow onset events include risks and impacts from rising temperatures, desertification, biodiversity loss, land and forest degradation, glacial retreat, ocean acidification, sea level rise, and salinization.

Any compulsory, unrequited payment to the government levied on corporations or individuals. This can be for environmental reasons, such as introducing a Carbon tax to set a price that emitters must pay for the greenhouse gases they emit.

Either money or something of monetary value is transferred between two or more organisations, people or countries.

Activities that involve planning, designing and building infrastructure, residential, and commercial structures.

This sector includes firms and individuals offering specialised expertise in fields such as law, accounting, consulting, science and engineering.

Activities of businesses and institutions that provide financial services and products to individuals and organisations.

Hot temperature extremes are daily maximum temperatures  that were exceeded on average once in a decade or once in 50 years, and includes heatwaves.

This sector creates and distributes information and entertainment through television, radio, print, and digital platforms.

woman and genders outside of the gender binary

The release of heat-trapping gases, primarily from human activities such as burning fossil fuels, agriculture and industry.

This sector involves activities to move goods and people, alongside the storage of products.

Extreme weather refers to events where a weather variable exceeds (or falls below) a threshold. Meaning it is significantly different from the average or usual weather pattern.

The cryosphere is the frozen part of the Earth—it includes sea ice, glaciers, snow, and ice sheets. It helps regulate the climate and weather by reflecting sunlight. Rising temperatures are causing melting, leading to sea ice loss, glacier collapse, and glacier landslides and avalanches. This threatens the livelihoods of around 700 million people who rely on the cryosphere for food, water security, and cultural practices.

This sector involves activities that impart knowledge and skills to individuals, including formal schooling, vocational training and educational support.

Take Down Macron Protester Cases - appeal

Policy instrument

Risk

Impacted group

Fossil fuel

Greenhouse gas

Economic sector

Finance