French National Assembly approves mandatory investigation baseline in sexual violence bill

Mandatory investigative baseline

Deputies in the French National Assembly voted on Friday, 2 October 2026, to establish a compulsory baseline of investigative steps for all reported cases of sexual, sexist, and intrafamilial violence. The provision, adopted unanimously with 107 votes in favor, seeks to prevent complaints from being closed without adequate preliminary inquiry. Under the adopted text, investigators must carry out a specified set of actions, including interviewing both the victim and the accused, searching the suspect's residence, and checking for other potential victims. Isabelle Rauch of the Horizons parliamentary group noted that the measure aimed to provide reassurance to complainants.

A simple message: we listen to you, we believe you, we take care of you.

The debate over home searches

The bill maintains a one-year deadline for judicial police officers to complete these core investigative acts. During the plenary debate, National Rally deputy Thomas Ménagé proposed making residential searches optional, arguing that investigators should only conduct searches when deemed useful to alleviate their workload. Green deputy Marie-Charlotte Garin, the rapporteur on this section of the bill, rejected the proposal by citing the 2024 conviction of Dominique Pelicot, who received a 20-year prison sentence.

He gets arrested because he is filming under women's skirts [...] it is because there was a search of the home that we were able to find the phone, the camcorder and all the horrors that were on it.

Administrative burdens and military exemptions

The government successfully introduced an amendment removing a requirement that would have obliged judicial police officers to draft a formal justification report after twelve months if the required investigative acts were incomplete. Aurore Bergé, the Minister for Equality between Women and Men, defended the deletion by citing excessive procedural burden on law enforcement and noted that all completed actions are already documented in the case file. Socialist deputy Colette Capdevielle criticized the amendment, stating that a formal report is needed to explain twelve-month delays to victims. Following the MeToo des Armées movement, lawmakers also approved an amendment ending a criminal procedure rule that required prosecutors to obtain prior military advice before initiating specific proceedings.

Independent authority and unresolved divisions

Lawmakers also approved the establishment of an independent authority dedicated to combating sexual and intrafamilial violence. The body is responsible for evaluating public policy outcomes, maintaining data on femicides in France, and conducting research. While the comprehensive bill brought together feminist organizations and child rights advocates, discussions in the chamber exposed disagreements regarding funding allocations and the future of departmental criminal courts.