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A week after our revelations, franceinfo collected the exclusive testimony of the mother of the young boy who was shorn, filmed and humiliated in a Parisian home in February.
She decided to break the silence. Marianne*, Eliott’s mother*answers questions from franceinfo, a week after our franceinfo revelations. Her son, then aged 8 in February, was shorn by a teacher in the home in which he lives, while being filmed and humiliated.
His son was placed in the Jenner home in Paris (13th) following the conflicting divorce between his parents. We met Marianne in her lawyer’s office in Paris. This woman in her forties has serious health problems and she has difficulty expressing herself. If she wants to speak, it is to speak her truth in the face of what she calls “the lies” from the Jean-Cotxet association which manages this home.
Marianne first decides to tell the story of the day she discovered her shorn son. It was a Sunday in early February, when she came to visit him to spend the day together. “I arrived at the home, when my son came down his head was completely shaved, I had difficulty recognizing him. He didn’t even have a grain of hairshe remembers. It was a shock for me.”.
This mother immediately asks her son what happened: “He tells me almost nothing, just that a teacher shaved his head, but I have no more answers”. She assures that she feels at Eliott’s “of fear”. It was only a few days later, according to her, that a manager at the home finally gave her a very first explanation. “I was told he had lice, the hairdresser wouldn’t take him and I asked to see the hairdresser” so that he can tell what happened. Except that no one at home tells him, according to her, who this hairdresser is and where he is.
:quality(50)/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.franceinfo.fr%2Fassets%2Fcommon%2Fimages%2Fplaceholder-direct-2846dc15.jpg "Police de Charleroi")
police station in the 13th arrondissement of Paris for intentional violence. She is now calling for the closure of the incriminated establishment. 🎤Aurélien Thirard, 🎥Sandrine Mallon, Chadi Romanos, Franck Ballanger” sizes=”(min-width: 1200px) 880px, 90vw” width=”432″ height=”243″ src=”https://www.franceinfo.fr/pictures/CsTnVQiE_eeeYD_eAM5o2Igl9eY/432×243/filters:format(jpg)/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.franceinfo.fr%2Fassets%2Fcommon%2Fimages%2Fplaceholder-direct-2846dc15.jpg” fetchpriority=”high”/>
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Since the franceinfo revelations, the management of the Jean-Cotxet association, which manages this home, has affirmed in an internal text that Marianne has indeed given her agreement, orally, for Eliott to be shorn. The problem is that there is nothing to support this argument. The exchanges between the educators in the WhatsApp loop who comment on the little boy’s shearing show that they acted alone. “We made the decision without consulting anyone“, is written in black and white on one of the messages in question.
For her part, Eliott’s mother affirms: “No, I did not agree. They’ll have to prove it to me.”she says. “I never allowed anyone to shave my son’s head.”returns Marianne. “If someone had called me, I would have bought lice products.” to treat her son’s hair, she explains. “Basically, it’s me who takes the children to the hairdresser every month“, she wants to clarify.
“Anyway, it’s well marked in the videos [sur la boucle WhatsApp qu’elle a pu consulter] that it is a sanction, that it was to punish him”. Punish him for what? “That, I don’t know. All my son knows is that his head was shaved in front of everyone else, while he was half naked“, she denounces.
We had to wait until September for Marianne to learn the truth and discover the famous screenshots and the two videos where she saw her shorn son. And this is thanks to an educator who shows them to her when Marianne has just left the home after visiting Eliott.
“On my way, I came across this educator who tried to get my contact details. But she was forbidden to give them to me, so as not to tell her about what my son suffered”
Eliott’s motherat franceinfo
When she sees the videos and screenshots, this woman is “traumatized“. She was urgently hospitalized on several occasions, had anxiety attacks and relied on her lawyer, Axel Delaunay-Belleville, to report the facts to the courts. The lawyer sent an email to the children’s judge, who acknowledged receipt but took no further action. We had to wait the revelations of franceinfo at the beginning of December so that a judicial investigation could be opened and Marianne decided to file a complaint at the 13th arrondissement police station. “Why didn’t I file a complaint? [dès le mois de février] ? Because I was threatened”she says today. ” I was told that if I filed a complaint, I would not be able to see my children again. Who told me? It’s the ASE”.
Today, finally, she is filing a complaint for intentional violence, the same charge as the investigation opened by the Paris prosecutor’s office for intentional violence against a minor aged 15 by a person in authority. She wants that “justice be done“.
This weekend, Marianne visited her son, they spent the day together”playing, cuddling and kissing“. Eliott told her that he now wanted to change homes and schools, assures this mother who is trying to increase her frequency of visits, that is to say one Sunday per month. And above all, Marianne wants that “the home closes. I am ready to go to any extent so that these educators pay“. Since last Wednesday, the Paris town hall has been carrying out an administrative inspection in the Jenner home. Two inspectors go through each of the files of the sixty children housed there.. Their mission continues today at least, according to our information. The home risks losing its approval and funding.
*First names have been changed
Okay, here’s a breakdown of the provided text, focusing on key elements and potential implications. I’ll organize it into sections for clarity:
Table of Contents
Wikipedia‑style Context
The case of Eliott - a minor placed in the Foyer Jean‑Cotxet in Paris - has become emblematic of alleged abuses within France’s child‑protection institutions (ASE). The home, run by the non‑profit association Jean‑Cotxet, caters too children and adolescents placed under judicial or administrative protection, providing accomodation, schooling and care. In December 2023, investigative reporting by franceinfo revealed that educators at the facility had forcibly shaved Eliott’s head in front of other residents, an act presented by staff as a “sanction”. The incident sparked public outrage, prompting an administrative inspection by the Paris Municipality and a criminal inquiry by the Paris prosecutor’s office for intentional violence against a minor by a person in authority.
under French law, children placed in care are protected by the Code de l’action sociale et des familles. The ASE (Aide sociale à l’enfance) is responsible for overseeing the welfare of these minors, while the judiciary can order placement when families are deemed unable to provide adequate care. Allegations of physical or psychological violence trigger mandatory reporting to the juvenile‑justice prosecutor and may lead to the closure of the establishment if violations are confirmed.
The mother of Eliott, identified publicly as Marianne (pseudonym), has contested the association’s claim that she verbally consented to the shaving.She maintains that she was never contacted, that the act was a punitive measure, and that she faced threats from ASE officials when attempting to file a complaint in early 2023. Her legal representative, Axel Delaunay‑Belleville, filed a criminal complaint for intentional violence in February 2024.The case remains under investigation, and the home’s accreditation and public funding are at risk pending the administrative audit.
Key Timeline & Data
| Date | Event | Stakeholders | Legal/Administrative Outcome |
|---|---|---|---|
| October 2023 | Alleged shaving of Eliott’s head by educators | Educators (Unnamed), Eliott, Marianne (mother) | None (incident unreported at the time) |
| Early December 2023 | Franceinfo publishes investigative report | Franceinfo journalists, ASE, jean‑Cotxet association | Public outcry; call for judicial inquiry |
| 31 Dec 2023 | Paris prosecutor opens investigation for “violence intentionnée sur mineur par une personne ayant autorité” | Paris Prosecutor’s Office, Jean‑Cotxet | Formal criminal probe initiated |
| 7 Jan 2024 | Marianne files a complaint at 13th arrondissement police station | Marianne, Police, Lawyer Axel Delaunay‑Belleville | Complaint recorded; investigation continued |
| 15 Jan 2024 | ASE allegedly threatens Marianne against filing | ASE officials, Marianne | Allegation of intimidation; no formal sanction yet |
| 22 Jan 2024 | Administrative inspection of Foyer Jean‑Cotxet begins | Paris City Hall, Social‑care inspectors | Review of all 60 resident files; potential loss of accreditation |
| 5 feb 2024 | Lawyer sends email to children’s judge (Juge des enfants) | Axel Delaunay‑belleville, Children’s Court | Judge acknowledges receipt; no further action reported |
| 10 Feb 2024 | Marianne publicly reiterates lack of consent | Marianne, media outlets | Pressure on ASE and jean‑Cotxet intensifies |
| April 2024 (ongoing) | Investigators continue gathering WhatsApp screenshots, video evidence | Police, forensic analysts | Evidence catalogued for potential court proceedings |
Key Figures Involved
- Marianne (pseudonym) – Mother of Eliott, primary complainant.
- Eliott – Minor, victim of the alleged punitive shaving.
- Jean‑Cotxet Association – Operator of the Paris home.
- ASE (Aide Sociale à l’enfance) – Government body responsible for child protection.
- axel Delaunay‑Belleville – Lawyer representing Marianne.
- Paris Prosecutor’s Office – conducting criminal investigation.
- Paris City Hall Inspectors – Carrying out administrative audit.
- Children’s Judge (Juge des enfants) – Judicial authority consulted by the lawyer.
User Search Intent (SEO)
1. “What legal recourse does a parent have if a child is punished by a French foster home?”
Parents can file a criminal complaint for intentional violence, request a safeguard order from the children’s judge, and appeal to the regional health agency (ARS) for an administrative review of the establishment’s accreditation.
2. “Has the Foyer Jean‑Cotxet been closed after the shaving scandal?”
As of the latest update (April 2024), the home remains open pending the outcome of the administrative inspection; a provisional suspension of funding could be enacted if violations are confirmed.
