Two gendarmes have been charged with manslaughter in the investigation into the death of Claude Jean-Pierre, which occurred after a traffic stop in 2020. Until now placed under the status of assisted witnesses, the two officers were questioned in Guadeloupe before this new judicial step.
Sixty-seven-year-old Claude Jean-Pierre was stopped in Deshaies for erratic driving. He collapsed after being removed from his vehicle and was then transported to the University Hospital of Pointe-à-Pitre. He was pronounced dead several days later.
The circumstances of the arrest examined
The partial release of CCTV footage in 2021 sparked outrage in the archipelago. The footage showed soldiers abruptly removing the man in his sixties from his car, before his head struck part of the vehicle's interior. According to the prosecutor's office, no deliberate blows were visible in the images.
The investigation must determine whether the method used during the arrest was appropriate and whether it played a role in the death. The public prosecutor's office had requested that the case be dismissed in February 2023, but further investigative steps were subsequently initiated. The two gendarmes involved have since been transferred out of Guadeloupe.
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