“I didn’t think about it and I tweeted like that” : young people ” without history “, tried in Paris for harassing online or threatening to kill teenage Mila after her controversial video on Islam, assured Monday that they did not realize that they were participating in a « raid » digital.
On November 16, Lauren G., a 21-year-old English bachelor’s degree student, wrote on her Twitter account: “That someone crushes his skull out of pity”.
She was reacting to the new video very critical of Islam, which has gone viral, published by Mila, ten months after a first post in which the latter qualified this religion “Shit”. These first words had already triggered a flood of hate messages and threats and forced the teenager to live under police protection.
The thirteen defendants aged 18 to 30, most of them without a criminal record, atheists or of all faiths, appear for harassment, sometimes accompanied by threats, cited by the prosecution as part of an investigation by the new national center for the fight against online hatred.
Profiles “Surprising” for the president of the tribunal Michaël Humbert who, during nearly 14 hours of hearing, often recalled his role: ” understand “ a ” Societal phenomenon “, without “Excuse” ni “Legitimize”, without “Make an example” no more.
“There will be a before and after this trial. We are laying down the rules for the acceptable and the unacceptable ”, said the magistrate, while the Mila case has revived the debate on the limits of freedom of expression.
” Stupid “
The defendants questioned Monday – four will be on Tuesday morning – admitted the vast majority of being the authors of the messages but contesting any criminal offense.
“At the time, I was not aware that (Mila) was being harassed. It was stupid and I should have thought ”, explains Lauren G., loose sweater, jeans and sneakers. “I was fed up with seeing her first name all the time in my news feed when she didn’t interest me”, she justifies.
“I reacted hot, I said anything […] You always have to think before you tweet ”, admits Enzo C., a practicing Christian of 22 years, who wrote in November “You deserve to get your throat slit big bitch” before deleting his message.
Pleading the “Stupidity”, “A little ashamed” and “Necessarily a little worried” for his dreamed future as an ambulance driver, he is keen to ” apologize “ to Mila. “I hope you can get back to your normal life”.
“It was clearly not a death threat to me”, defends Pierre R., 20, logistics agent in Lyon, atheist. Accused of writing “You have to blow it up”, he assures us that he was talking about “Suspend the account” of Mila.
Alyssa K., student in “Humanity license” 20-year-old, civic service in a town hall and a Muslim, says she was unaware of the threatening connotation of her message.
“So when you say” let her die, “for you it is not threatening? “, asks the president. “Well, it’s very dangerous to leave a cell phone in the hands of a person like you”, he comments.
Prosecuted for harassment for writing wanting to put “A kick out” to Mila, “This badly fucked”, Jordan L, 29 year old unemployed cook, “Regret” remarks “Beasts, gritty”. But assumes, nonchalant at the bar, the substance of his message, in the name of freedom of expression, before deploring a trial « spectacle ».
“I will not submit”
After a “Intermission”, the court heard at length from the mother of Mila, then the teenager now aged 18, who denounced violence “Totally unjustifiable” that she refused to apologize.
“I do not threaten a person with death because I do not like what they have said”, the young woman retorted to the president who asked her if her stalkers could have been “Hit” by his words.
In her second video, posted on November 14 on the Tik Tok social network, she said: “And last thing, watch your buddy Allah, please. Because my fingers in her asshole, I still haven’t got them out ”.
“I am sure that if I had criticized Islam without bad words, they would have reacted in the same way and found other arguments”, says Mila, white jacket over black dress, blue-green hair cut to the square.
Leaning on the bar, the one that has been erected by some as a megaphone for the right to blasphemy, ensures: “They want to ban me from talking about Islam. […] I will not submit ”.
The defendants face up to three years’ imprisonment and a fine of € 45,000. Continuation and end of the trial on Tuesday.
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