Homicide and violent delinquency in France: An overview framed within an international context Catherine Blatier a, ⁎, Wendy Pullin b , Caroline Gimenez a , Martine Paulicand a a University of Grenoble, France b Concordia University College of Alberta, Canada abstract article info Article history: Received 16 January 2009 Received in revised form 17 December 2009 Accepted 17 January 2010 Available online 22 January 2010 Keywords: Homicide Delinquency Justice France Young offenders In this article, homicides in France are examined and framed within an international context. Homicide, given its association with other forms of criminality and delinquency, is an excellent index to employ in examining rates of increase in violent acts in France. Homicides in France often occur in socially disadvantaged neighborhoods. However, minors are infrequently implicated in homicides. Several factors are proposed to explain the relatively low rate of homicides in France. Finally, France's penal response to homicide is examined in terms of its potential braking effect on the rate of homicides committed. Accounting for the overall pattern of delinquency and criminality within an international context, it could be hypothesized that in France, relative to other nations, forms of violent delinquency have taken the place of homicidal acts. © 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. Contents 1. The international situation in terms of homicide . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 261 2. The situation in France . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 262 3. Delinquency in socially disadvantaged neighborhoods . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 262 4. Delinquent adolescents: rarely those who commit homicide . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 262 5. The presence of firearms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 263 6. Unemployment and standard of living . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 264 7. The penal response to homicide . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 264 8. “Not guilty” specifications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 264 9. Incarceration in France . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 265 10. The French model under discussion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 265 11. Conclusions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 266 References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 266 Criminal violence has increased significantly in France over the course of the last few years. This fact leads to a number of questions, such as: (1) Is this a phenomenon that can be observed in a number of different countries or is it limited to particular countries? (2) Does an association between delinquency and homicide exist? (3) What proportion of this criminal violence is attributed to minors? (4) Can factors associated with risk and prevention be identified? In this article, the authors address these questions and provide an overview of acts of homicide and violent delinquency in France and frame this overview within an international context. 1. The international situation in terms of homicide Comparing rates of homicide per population of 100,000 across different countries is informative, allowing us to focus on actual changes in criminality and the perception of these changes over time. Due to widespread media coverage of homicide, the perception of the significance of homicide needs to be interpreted with caution. From the point of view of published research, homicide is probably the Aggression and Violent Behavior 15 (2010) 261–266 ⁎ Corresponding author. University of Grenoble, Pierre Mendes France, Laboratoire Interuniversitaire de Psychologie (LIP), UFR SHS, BP 47X, F-38040 GRENOBLE CEDEX, France. E-mail address: Catherine.Blatier@upmf-grenoble.fr (C. Blatier). 1359-1789/$ – see front matter © 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. doi:10.1016/j.avb.2010.01.004 Contents lists available at ScienceDirect Aggression and Violent Behavior