Overview
- The Paris special appeals court is retrying Naïm Boudaoud, Azim Epsirkhanov, Brahim Chnina and Abdelhakim Sefrioui, with hearings scheduled through 27 February.
- At the opening session, all four denied the allegations, with Chnina expressing regrets while disputing the facts and Sefrioui proclaiming his innocence.
- Sefrioui’s new lawyer, Francis Vuillemin, alleged that Samuel Paty discriminated against Muslim pupils, drawing sharp condemnation from the family’s lawyer and the teacher’s sister.
- In the first trial, judges said Chnina and Sefrioui, though not knowing the killer, helped create a climate conducive to violence, and found Boudaoud and Epsirkhanov assisted their friend as he sought weapons.
- Defense teams requested testimony from Laurent Nuñez and Éric Dupond‑Moretti; the court noted Dupond‑Moretti does not wish to appear and Nuñez would require a decree, with decisions pending.